THESE GIANTS MAY SURPRISE

Here are five underdog names to watch with the Giants’ offseason program completed and their 2017 training camp around the bend, starting in late July:

Powe a former Cal target and teammate of No. 1 overall pick QB Jared Goff, worked on the Giants’ practice squad last season. This offseason the former undrafted free agent has drawn increased reps with the first- and second-team offenses, and appears poised to make a push.

The Giants love Powe’s size (6-3, 220), speed, blocking, and ability to make contested catches in traffic. Powe said last Thursday at minicamp that he has improved his film work and translation of the playbook to the field. Now the next ingredient is to take his strengths and production into games that matter for making the roster. Specifically, in last year’s preseason, Powe had just one catch for six yards on six targets, while Tavarres King scored two TDs against the Jets and secured a spot.

The deck admittedly is stacked against Powe with the Giants projected six-deep at receiver with Odell Beckham Jr., Marshall, Sterling Shepard, Dwayne Harris, and King and Roger Lewis Jr., if they retain their spots. But a spot could open due to Lewis Jr.’s pending legal situation due to a recent arrest, or Powe simply could force Ben McAdoo’s hand.

Powe said last Thursday that he and backup quarterback Josh Johnson have been talking about how they intend to tear it up in preseason games as they battle for roster spots. Then Powe added: “Geno, too.”

Which brings us to re-evaluate Smith’s progression since signing with the Giants in March: First, no one understood why the Giants signed Smith. But Smith has looked much better physically than expected coming off a torn ACL last season with the Jets. And now Smith, 26, enters training camp with a real chance of winning the No. 2 QB job behind Eli Manning. Johnson, the even-mannered veteran journeyman, still has a leg up on the playbook from being a Giant last season.

But don’t count out Smith, who is keeping calm and grounded but no doubt has a huge chip on his shoulder to prove he can play at a high level, in this league and market. Smith always has had a strong arm, and Powe said Smith doesn’t wind up his arm like a lot of other QBs but that the ball fires out quickly anyway. Rookie QB Davis Webb will make the team, but McAdoo sounds committed to “redshirting” the third-round rookie draft pick.

Smith stood out on the final day of minicamp among newcomers standing on the field reserved for the first-team offense. McAdoo badly wants a fullback, and Smith, an undrafted rookie out of San Jose State, seems like the early front-runner ahead of Jacob Huesman a Tennessee-Chattanooga product.

Smith, who was not invited to the NFL Combine, blew away teams with a stellar pro day in March. Smith’s 36 reps of the 225-pound bench press were more than any player’s at the Combine, including offensive linemen. Smith’s 37-inch vertical even came in only a half-inch short of Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey, the Carolina Panthers’ 8th overall pick. He leapt 10 feet, six inches in the broad jump and ran a respectable 4.77 (for a fullback) in the 40-yard dash.

Smith’s work ethic, though, is only part of what makes him an exciting fit. He is a willing and experienced lead blocker. His offensive coordinator as a junior had the Spartans running a lot of 21 personnel, Smith said, and he was the lead blocker for tailback Tyler Ervin, a fourth-round pick by the Texans.

Smith had limited offensive stats for carries and catches, but he also had 15 total tackles and is a former linebacker, more than capable of helping on special teams.

The Giants went out and signed Draughn and let Bobby Rainey walk in free agency. If Shane Vereen and Orleans Darkwa both show well in training camp and stay healthy, there may not be room for Draughn with Paul Perkins, Vereen, Darkwa and fourth-round pick Wayne Gallman all projected to make the team. (Adding a fullback and having a deep group of tight ends may squeeze him out, as well.) However, the veteran journeyman Draughn’s reliability and pass-catching ability should be appealing to McAdoo as he seeks consistency and predictability in the running game.

Draughn’s versatility also makes him the natural next man up to sneak up and snatch any opportunity that arises should any of the players ahead of him stumble or sustain an injury. His 225 career carries for 723 yards and seven TDs (and only two fumbles) — in six seasons for six different teams — make him the second-most accomplished back on the roster on the ground behind only Vereen (311 carries, 1,325 yards, eight TDs).