{"id":210409,"date":"2026-04-26T17:33:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-26T17:33:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/210409\/"},"modified":"2026-04-26T17:33:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-26T17:33:14","slug":"ny-giants-nfl-draft-grades-new-york-gets-high-marks-for-2026-class-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/210409\/","title":{"rendered":"NY Giants NFL Draft grades: New York gets high marks for 2026 class"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2026 NFL Draft is over. Nobody really knows who did well and who did not. Snap NFL Draft grades, though, are a part of life. Below, how NFL analysts believe the New York Giants<\/a> did in their first draft with John Harbaugh and Joe Schoen working together.<\/p>\n

The Giants could have gone a few directions with their two top-10 picks, the second of which was added days before the draft in a\u00a0Dexter Lawrence<\/a> II\u00a0trade\u00a0with the Bengals. I thought that was a really good trade for general manager Joe Schoen, and it set John Harbaugh\u2019s Giants<\/a> up to do some work early in Round 1. The best case in my eyes would have been\u00a0Jeremiyah Love\u00a0at No. 5 and\u00a0Jordyn Tyson\u00a0at No. 10. Unfortunately, neither player was still on the board at the respective picks.<\/p>\n

Plan B was landing Reese with the first selection. This is my No. 3 overall prospect and top guy on the defensive side of the ball. I get the confusion considering the Giants just used the third pick on\u00a0Abdul Carter<\/a>\u00a0a year ago and also have\u00a0Brian Burns<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Kayvon Thibodeaux<\/a>. Edge rusher isn\u2019t a need. But as a team that is 7-27 over the past two years and has a defense that allowed a league-worst 5.3 yards per rush in 2025, the Giants needed good football players. Reese is a\u00a0really\u00a0good one. \u2026 I have no problem with taking an elite player and figuring out the perfect way to use him later.<\/p>\n

Mauigoa at No. 10 also makes sense, as protecting\u00a0Jaxson Dart<\/a>\u00a0and opening some rushing lanes for\u00a0Cam Skattebo<\/a>\u00a0off a\u00a0leg injury\u00a0will be key. \u2026 The one issue I have with this pick is Caleb Downs<\/a> was still available. Harbaugh had\u00a0Kyle Hamilton<\/a>\u00a0in Baltimore<\/a>, and he could have had Downs in New York<\/a>. If we\u2019re talking about \u201cbest player available,\u201d there\u2019s a strong case for my No. 6 prospect at No. 10. But overall, this was a great first round for the Giants.<\/p>\n

New York hit more needs on Day 2. It would have surprised no one if\u00a0Colton Hood\u00a0was a first-round pick. He\u2019s a long, athletic corner. His Senior Bowl week could have been better, but he\u2019s physical at 193 pounds. He didn\u2019t pile up interceptions (three over 29 games), but he doesn\u2019t allow completions, either. And\u00a0Malachi Fields<\/a>\u00a0fits as a potential WR2 behind\u00a0Malik Nabers<\/a>. He\u2019s a walking highlight reel on downfield catches. Fields shields defenders from the ball with his length and physicality, and he has terrific hands, with just two drops over the past two seasons.<\/p>\n

Analysis: Coach John Harbaugh more than delivered in his first draft with the Giants. Harbaugh went with the best-player-available route with his first pick and ignored his team\u2019s depth at edge rusher, taking Reese, a hybrid playmaker who offers the most upside as a pass rusher. If the team doesn\u2019t trade Kayvon Thibodeaux, Reese can start as an off-ball linebacker, which is not a bad idea for a coach who thrives in maximizing sideline-to-sideline playmakers. With the pick the team gained from the Bengals in the Dexter Lawrence II trade, New York again added depth by selecting Mauigoa, the tackle out of Miami<\/a>. He can start at guard if the team doesn\u2019t want to disrupt bookend tackles Andrew Thomas<\/a> and Jermaine Eluemunor<\/a>. The Giants also nailed their Day 2 picks, with the competitive Hood and the playmaking Fields.<\/p>\n

The Giants received a gift with Reese falling into their lap at No. 5; he\u2019ll be an excellent pass rusher and run defender, whether he\u2019s lined up in the box or on the edge. Trading\u00a0Dexter Lawrence\u00a0to the Bengals netted New York\u00a0the 10th overall pick, which the team used to select Mauigoa, an intense, powerful blocker who could play guard or tackle. Getting the athletic, tough Hood in Round 2 was a bargain.\u00a0The price\u00a0to move into position for Fields, however, was steep, requiring the Giants to part with a fourth- and fifth-round pick this year and another fourth-rounder in the potentially strong 2027 NFL Draft. Fields is a big-bodied pass-catcher who made plays for Notre Dame but lacks the suddenness and long speed typically expected from Day 2 receivers.<\/p>\n

The Giants spent their fourth- and fifth-round picks for Fields instead of using them to find value on Saturday. Their first Day 3 pick was Jamison-Travis, a nose tackle who could help make up for a slice of what the team lost when trading Lawrence. Davis\u2019 shape and movement remind me of starting right tackle\u00a0Jermaine Eluemunor<\/a>, and I think Kelly is a much better player than his sixth-round status indicates.<\/p>\n

Whether or not OLB Arvell Reese\u00a0fell\u00a0to fifth overall, he could eventually develop into this draft\u2019s best overall player and one who justifies the widespread comparisons to Micah Parsons<\/a>. Perhaps. Maybe.\u00a0Acquiring the 10th pick from Cincinnati<\/a> for Pro Bowl DL Dexter Lawrence\u00a0(and his salary) last weekend, ultimately in exchange for OL Francis Mauigoa \u2013 arguably the draft\u2019s best tackle \u2013 seems like another win for Big Blue. Getting CB Colton Hood (Round 2) and WR Malachi Fields (Round 3) on Day 2 project as relative value picks. New coach John Harbaugh could have this squad fighting for a playoff return in short order.<\/p>\n

The Giants had to have been doing backflips in the draft room when Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese fell to them at no. 5. Reese, my top-ranked player, is a versatile and explosive hybrid playmaker who splits time between off-ball linebacker and edge rusher, showing top-end talent at both spots. He\u2019s an awesome addition to the New York front seven and should get his start at linebacker, per the team, giving the Giants the chance to put him on the field with Brian Burns and Abdul Carter. The selection of offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa was much less sexy but important nonetheless, giving Jaxson Dart a bookend tackle opposite Andrew Thomas over the long term (Mauigoa could fill in at guard initially as well). I liked the second-round selection of Tennessee cornerback Colton Hood, who could compete for snaps right away and strengthen the team\u2019s depth at a hugely important spot. And while I didn\u2019t love how much the Giants had to give up to trade up for Notre Dame receiver Malachi Fields (fourth and fifth-round picks this year, plus a fourth-rounder next year), I do like the fit for him in New York. Fields is a big-bodied ball winner with surprisingly twitchy movement skills as a route runner. He\u2019s a nice complement to Malik Nabers and gives Dart another receiver to look for in the red zone. Overall, this looks like an amazing start for the John Harbaugh era in New York.<\/p>\n

Edge Arvell Reese (5) and OT Francis Mauigoa (10) are foundation players. CB Colton Hood (37) is a first-round talent. WR Malachi Fields (74) could\u2019ve gone higher in this draft. DL Bobby Jamison-Travis (186), OT J.C. Davis (192) and LB Jack Kelly (193) round out an impressive crop in John Harbaugh\u2019s first draft with the Giants.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The 2026 NFL Draft is over. Nobody really knows who did well and who did not. Snap NFL…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":210410,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[19888,11651,47939,36074,4507,47940,3923,1757,82817,4508,51489,4084,3917,35080,19884,34377,4509,34126,80464,3920,5546,12340,9,2683,11,10,22,83233,3918],"class_list":{"0":"post-210409","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-abdul-carter","9":"tag-andrew-thomas","10":"tag-arvell-reese","11":"tag-baltimore","12":"tag-brian-burns","13":"tag-caleb-downs","14":"tag-cam-skattebo","15":"tag-cincinnati","16":"tag-colton-hood","17":"tag-dexter-lawrence","18":"tag-francis-mauigoa","19":"tag-giants","20":"tag-jaxson-dart","21":"tag-jermaine-eluemunor","22":"tag-joe-schoen","23":"tag-john-harbaugh","24":"tag-kayvon-thibodeaux","25":"tag-kyle-hamilton","26":"tag-malachi-fields","27":"tag-malik-nabers","28":"tag-miami","29":"tag-micah-parsons","30":"tag-new-york","31":"tag-new-york-giants","32":"tag-new-york-headlines","33":"tag-new-york-news","34":"tag-nfl","35":"tag-reese","36":"tag-the-giants"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210409","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=210409"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/210409\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/210410"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=210409"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=210409"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=210409"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}