The Giants may not have planned on Arvell Reese being there at No. 5 in the 2026 NFL Draft, but they’re certainly acting like they found a difference-maker.
That’s the buzz around the rookie linebacker as camp gets rolling. In a recent Athletic piece projecting year-one expectations for every first-round pick, Nick Baumgardner singled Reese out as “arguably the most talented rookie in this class.” He also suggested Reese should be a playmaker for New York’s defense right away.
That kind of pressure usually comes with a learning curve, especially for a linebacker. Reese, though, looks built for a fast track.
The Giants are expected to open the season with him starting at inside linebacker alongside veteran Tremaine Edmunds, even though his college tape at Ohio State was split almost evenly between off-ball linebacker and edge rusher. A lot of draft evaluators figured he’d end up full-time on the edge, but New York’s depth there made inside linebacker the cleaner fit.
Even then, the Giants aren’t planning to box him in. After the draft, head coach John Harbaugh said, "Arvell is a versatile player, and we're going to play him at inside backer, Will linebacker.
Our defense is pretty flexible, position-less, you might call it. We'll have an opportunity to move those guys around.
But he'll line up next to Tremaine, and he'll be in the A gap, the B gap, the C gap, the D gap, off the edge. He'll be moving around with all of our guys."
That kind of deployment fits Reese’s game. He’s at his best when he’s flowing toward the football, and defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson has room to get creative with how he uses him.
The early signs in camp have only fueled the optimism. After the first padded practice, The Athletic’s Dan Duggan called Reese a clear standout, saying, "He was all over the field today. Could really see his potential impact in the most physical practice of camp."
There’s a real sense that Reese doesn’t need to be locked into one spot to make an impact. Whether he’s lined up on the line or roaming from the second level, his athletic tools give him a chance to win in a lot of different ways.
That’s why a big rookie season isn’t hard to imagine. In this kind of role, Reese could be on track for more than 100 tackles, following a production path , last season's Defensive Rookie of the Year.
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