The New York Giants were the beneficiary of one of the early surprises in the 2026 NFL Draft, when linebacker/edge defender Arvell Reese, projected by many to go as high as No. 2 (he was Dane Brugler’s No. 1 in his Top 100), fell into their laps. The Giants passed on linebacker Sonny Styles, perhaps not surprisingly, to draft him, and then they maybe more surprisingly passed on safety Caleb Downs to draft offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa (who will probably move to right guard, at least early in his career). The Giants will get to see a lot of Styles and Downs, who went to Washington and Dallas, respectively, but it’s hard to argue with Reese and Mauigoa. It’s fair to project that the Giants’ starting offensive line is now defined, as well as their off-ball linebacker corps, although Reese may be a chess piece in Dennard Wilson’s defense.
Now Day 2 of the draft is almost upon us, and thanks to the trade-up for Jaxson Dart last year and the absence of a trade-down this year on Day 1, there will be early intrigue and then a lot of waiting for Day 3 to roll around…unless the Giants trade down from No. 37 to get an additional Day 2 pick.
For now, though, let’s look at a few players the Giants might consider drafting in Round 2 when they are on the clock at No. 37. The Giants must navigate a four-team gauntlet of teams whose needs partly overlap theirs (SF, ARI, BUF, LV).
Mc Donald is DT1 on most experts’ lists, and he was projected to go late in Round 1, so getting him at No. 37 would be a great find for the Giants. McDonald doesn’t give you much in pass rush at this point in his career, but he’s devastating against the run. Chris Pflum and Nick Falato said of him:
He has a very good initial burst, firing off the ball low and hard which allows him to be far more disruptive than expected for a nose tackle.
He shows a wrestler-like understanding of leverages, consistently getting under blockers’ pads and maintaining a low center of gravity to fight off blocks and control double teams. He also understands how to get skinny, either using half-man leverage to bull his way into the backfield or put his hips in a gap to force cutbacks in one-gap defensive schemes.
McDonald is very strong, consistently driving solo blockers into the backfield and is also fully capable of taking on double – and even triple – teams. He does an excellent job of creating piles in the middle of the defense, allowing his teammates to flow to the ball.
Other IDL possibilities if McDonald is off the board by No. 37: Christen Miller, Lee Hunter
Hood played opposite Travis Hunter in Colorado, then transferred to Tennessee and played opposite Jermod McCoy, becoming CB1 when McCoy went down with an ACL injury. McCoy is also still on the board, but his injury combined with questions about whether he might need additional surgery may scare the Giants and other teams off until later rounds. Hood meanwhile took over as CB1 and got himself noticed at the Senior Bowl. Chris and Nick say the following about him:
Hood has slightly below average size, but plays more like an old-school box safety. He plays with tremendous competitive toughness, offering great effort throughout the play. He’s fearless coming downhill to defend the run, featuring a hair trigger from zone coverage and willingness to fill gaps at full speed. Hood is a very willing tackler who seems to enjoy hitting ball carriers.
He needs to polish up his tackling technique and settles for shoulder checks too often. However, the willingness with which he launches himself at ball carriers suggests he’ll get there with coaching.
Hood has quick, light feet as well as the fluid hips necessary to stay in phase with receivers throughout their routes in man coverage. He does a good job of getting in sync and being physical with receivers without crossing the line into being grabby. Likewise, he has a solid understanding of route concepts as well as coverage structures. That allows him to avoid schemed traffic as well as efficiently pick up and pass off receivers in zone coverage.
Other cornerback possibilities: Avieon Terrell, Brandon Cisse (and Jermod McCoy if the Giants want to roll the dice on his health)
McNeil-Warren is one of the hybrid types of cornertback-safety-linebacker hybrids that defensive coordinators have begun to use as chess pieces to match different types of offenses and confuse them. McNeil-Warren somewhat surprisingly did not get chosen in Round 1; he was considered a first round talent by several analysts. You might imagine that the Giants passed on Caleb Downs gambling that this player might slide to them in Round 2. Chris and Nick said of him:
McNeil-Warren has great length for the position at 6-foot-3 with 32-inch arms. That length allows him to effectively wrap up ball carriers, attack the football and force fumbles (9 on his career, 3 last year), and be disruptive at the catch point (13 passes defensed, 5 in 2025).
He sports a high football IQ and is an active communicator in both the pre and post-snap phases of the game. McNeil-Warren is consistently directing traffic in the back end of the Rockets’ defense and plays a major role in orchestrating their post-snap coverage rotations. He has enough speed to quickly hit depth when dropping into a center field coverage zone and enough range to execute those responsibilities. Likewise, he has enough range and speed to come down and play the run from the intermediate area of the field.
McNeil-Warren typically diagnoses the opposing offense well and shows impressive processing speed mid-play. He reacts very quickly to misdirection or cut-backs from running backs, altering his pathing almost in sync with his opponents. He also has a lightning downhill trigger and flies to the ball once he diagnoses a running play.
McNeil-Warren has a very good closing burst, built on his ability to quickly stop and gather himself. He is very quick to drop his center of gravity before uncoiling to strike opponents. That allows him to hit much harder than his 201-pound frame would suggest. He seems to truly love the physical aspect of the game and has upside as a box safety thanks to his ability to knife through gaps and be a violent hitter.
Other possibilities: Treydan Stukes, D’Angelo Ponds
The Giants lost Dane Belton but still have Jevon Holland and Tyler Nubin, Jason Pinnock is back for a second stint in blue, and they added Ar’Darius Washington. Do you have confidence in any of them? Holland was excellent early in his career but has declined in recent years. Nubin showed promise as a rookie but has never become the ballhawk he was in college and was awful defending the run last year. Pinnock started well as a Giant but was poor in his final year. Washington is an intriguing addition but we haven’t seen him yet as a Giant.