The Giants own the No. 11-overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. This year, more than most others, they can go in several different directions with their first-round selection, and opinions can and do vary on what their top priority should be.

Here, in the first of a four-part series, A Case Can Be Made for the Giants going with an offensive lineman at No. 11. Coming tomorrow: Cornerbacks.

Stop the madness.

Stop dancing around the issue and grasping at even the most faint trace of progress. Stop hoping and wishing and projecting and anticipating improvement. Do not concern yourself with the unsexiness of the move — the smartest fans know best and are thirsting for this. With the moves the Giants already have made in free agency, with the return of a star weapon and with the franchise counting on a quantum step forward by the quarterback, get this accomplished and start the business of winning games again.

It is easy. Go for the top-rated offensive lineman on your draft board to complete the five-piece puzzle. Just like that, the Giants would be able to put a young and promising unit on the field, making life more pleasant for Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley and allowing their new and high-priced wide receiver, Kenny Golladay, to do his thing, rather than view the sad sight of the towering target waving his hands to indicate he’s open as the play dies in the collapsed pocket with another sack.

No one — well, not no one, but relatively few people — will go hog-wild in protest if general manager Dave Gettleman adds another hog-mollie, something he promised to do when he arrived and vowed to “fix’’ the offensive line. In his two years, Gettleman has added pieces but “fixed’’ was not part of any accurate description of what has gone down with his offensive line.

At best, the Giants have three starting linemen the masses can feel good about, though that could be seen as a stretch. In truth, there is not one player on the roster anyone can be certain is a stud.

Andrew Thomas, the 2020 first-round pick, got much better as a rookie after a shaky start to his NFL career. He is a keeper — he has to be. Nick Gates never played center before he was asked to make a position switch and, after predictable (and, at times, unsightly) growing pains, he looks to be capable at that spot.

Who else? Shane Lemieux, a 2020 fifth-round pick, became a starter at left guard when Will Hernandez got COVID-19 and, surprisingly, kept the job even after Hernandez returned. Lemieux’s best contribution was the feisty attitude he brought to the field, and the running game did pick up upon his arrival. He needs work as a pass-blocker, though.

The steady, dependable right guard, Kevin Zeitler, was released as a salary-cap casualty. Perhaps Hernandez, or free-agent pickup Zach Fulton, will move into that spot. Does that excite anyone? At right tackle, Matt Peart for now is the favorite to start after showing positive signs as a rookie. Nate Solder, a 2020 opt-out, took a massive pay-cut to continue his career and will back up both tackle spots, unless he beats out Peart on the right side.

This plan could work, but most likely will not. The Giants last year took offensive linemen in the first, third and fifth rounds, and this coaching staff is higher on these players than most on the outside. For the first time in 17 years, three Giants rookies started at least one game on the line.

What can one newcomer do to make this all look better? Plenty. Oregon’s Penei Sewell will not be on the board for the Giants, but Rashawn Slater might be. The Northwestern product opted out last season and is generally considered a can’t-miss. It just depends where. Some scouts see him as a great guard, others as a very good, but perhaps not great, tackle. Either would work fine for the Giants. If he is a right tackle, he would pair with Thomas, maybe for a decade.

Is there another college prospect worthy at No. 11? Christian Darrisaw of Virginia Tech will go in the first round, but it is only a matter of how quickly. If the Giants see him converting to the right side, he would have to be considered.

With a team that needs a bona fide edge rusher and another wide receiver and cornerback, why such urgency to upgrade the offensive line? Jones, in 2020, was tied with Joe Burrow of the Bengals as the fifth-most pressured quarterback in the league, according to Pro Football Focus. Jones was sacked 45 times, the fourth-highest total in the NFL. Did he cause more than a handful of those by holding onto the ball too long or showing a lack of awareness of the pressure building around him? Yes. Still, the line too often was at fault.

Glaring holes on the offensive line cannot be smoothed over with schemes and coaching smarts. At some point, your guys have to block their guys, pure and simple. The Giants haven’t done that sufficiently for years. That time needs to come to an end.