New York Giants 2026 NFL draft recap: Pick-by-pick analysis
Analyzing every pick made by the New York Giants in the 2026 NFL draft.
The New York Giants entered the 2026 NFL draft with two picks in the top 10 (Nos. 5 and 10) and with hopes that the night would be as fruitful as last year's first round when they came away with linebacker Abdul Carter and quarterback Jaxson Dart. This is the first draft under the Giants' new front office hierarchy led by the trio of general manager Joe Schoen, head coach John Harbaugh, and senior vice president of football operations and strategy Dawn Aponte.
Since the first NFL draft in 1936, the Giants have made multiple picks in the first round six times. Three of those have come in the last seven drafts, and two since Schoen took over as the general manager in 2022. Here's a recap and analysis of every pick made by the Giants in the 2026 NFL draft.
Round 1, No. 5: Arvell Reese, EDGE, Ohio State With Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love and Ohio State wideout Carnell Tate both off the board, Big Blue was faced with the unlikely scenario of choosing between all three of Ohio State's defensive game changers: Linebacker Sonny Styles, safety Caleb Downs, and edge rusher Arvell Reese. They went with Reese, who was the least likely to be on the board at No.
5. Reese, who stands at a sliver over 6-foot-4 and weighs in at 241 pounds, is just 20 years old and has a lot of room to both grow and mature. He ran a 4.