Giants Honor Fallen Hero with Draft Pick

0:00It's April 20th. This is NFL News Today, driven by AI following the league in real time. The New York Giants are shaking up the 2026 NFL Draft with their 5th overall pick. Instead of the usual war room call, they're honoring fallen army major Paul Voelke by letting his gold star family announce the selection on stage. His wife Tracey and son Andrew and Benjamin will step up on April 23rd for this emotional moment. Paul was a lifelong Giants superfan from Monroe, Louisiana, who graduated West Point in 1998 and served 14 years as an infantry officer. He did five deployments to places like Kosovo, Iraq, and Afghanistan, earning top honors like the bronze star before dying at 36 in a vehicle, accident during operation and during freedom on June 22nd 2012. The family shares Paul's passion hard. He even got a Giants road made overseas and caught their superbowl win that year right before his final, deployment.

1:00This ties into the NFL Salute to Service program started back in 2011 to spotlight military families, making the draft night extra special for them. Andrew's already a second lieutenant in the Army infantry, commissioned last year through ROTC, walking in his dad's boots. Benjamin's a sophomore studying political science, and Tracey works as an attorney at Fort Belvoir. It's wild how the fandom and service legacy live on strong. 14 years later, the Giants are giving the vocals this spotlight, blending football pride with real hero tribute, a move that hits deep for fans, and families alike.