Big Blue View
Schmitz has shown improvement, but that needs to continue
Two years into his NFL career, John Michael Schmitz of the New York Giants is considered a bottom-tier NFL starting center.
In a ranking of the starting centers for all 32 NFL teams, Pro Football Focus ranks the 2023 second-round pick No. 26.
PFF says:
Although the former second-round pick hasn’t quite lived up to expectations, he did show growth during his second season. After posting just a 41.4 PFF overall grade in his rookie season, Schmitz earned a 61.4 mark this past season.
Schmitz’s improvement from Year 1 to Year 2 bodes well for his potential. His pass-blocking grade rose from 26.9 in 2023 to 50.2 in 2024 — still not good enough, but an indicator of progress. His PFF run-blocking grade also increased by nearly 16 points, another good sign.
“I love playing next to John,” veteran guard Greg Van Roten said recently. “He’s a really, really smart center and I think he’s taken steps every year and hopefully this year, year three, you want to take another step. You want to be the guy and I think he is the guy, and we’ll just keep going.”
The Giants need Schmitz to keep getting better. He hasn’t yet truly justified being a second-round pick, and 2025 might tell us if he ever will.
