For every GM, Thursday night will be the first time they'll be conducting an NFL Draft from the confines of their homes.
Or will it?
Giants GM Dave Gettleman had some practice in this back in 2014 during his time with the Carolina Panthers. On Day 3 of the draft, Gettleman was in Massachusetts for his son's college graduation at Becker College. So he made the final three picks from his hotel room.
"It works, I'm telling you," Gettleman told ESPN's David Newton back then about using Skype to video conference his draft picks. "It works. They got to see my handsome face and I got to see theirs. The process was really the same. It really was.
"You always want to think optimistically and just hope that it's going to work electronically. There were times where it was a little choppy in terms of the video."
Gettleman's Panthers even made a trade with the Vikings that day, sending fifth- and seventh-round picks to move up in the draft.
Six years later, technology has advanced, but Gettleman and the Giants will also hope that things run smoothly. Video might still be choppy at times, but that's the best the league can do in these times combating coronavirus.
At that time, though, Gettleman knew he needed to see this once-in-a-lifetime event for his son, saying "this was one of those things that I believed I needed to do and it worked out fine."
And in doing so, Gettleman got a little taste of what he will be experiencing for three straight days with more important picks like his No. 4 overall selection. Hopefully it can go off without a hitch.
