The 2025 NFL season is finally in the books, and we now know that the New York Giants hold the fifth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
As the fifth team to put in their selection, there will only be four players the Giants won’t be able to draft — that’s just math. The trick will be figuring out which four players will be off the board when the Giants are on the clock.
The Las Vegas Raiders, New York Jets, and Arizona Cardinals have the first three selections, and each is pretty desperate for a quarterback. The question of how many quarterbacks are drafted in the Top 3, however, will be answered by how many declare.
Right now, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is widely expected to declare for the draft. There are more questions regarding Oregon’s Dante Moore and significantly more questions regarding Alabama’s Ty Simpson. There are good reasons for both to declare, though another year in college would likely be better for their long-term success.
Drafting fifth, with three quarterback-needy teams ahead of them, the Giants should probably hope that all three passers declare.
But let’s get to the prospects — and I’ll note that these aren’t in any order of preference.
Carnell Tate (WR, Ohio State)
Tate is Justin Jefferson to freshman mutant Jeremiah Smith’s Ja’Marr Chase, though Tate sports an athletic profile more reminiscent of Tee Higgins or A.J. Green.
He’s a long, lean receiver who wins less through dominant athleticism than with elite route running and body control. He has truly excellent hands with ZERO drops in 2025 and an 85.7% catch rate in contested situations. His route running and ball skills allow him to win at all levels of the field and he’s able to produce as a deep threat as well as a possession receiver.
Tate has been a very popular pick for the Giants in early mock drafts, most recently in Todd McShay’s first post-season mock draft. While Wan’Dale Robinson did rack up 1,000 yards, the injury to Malik Nabers put the Giants’ depth issues at receiver on full display.
Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson could fit here as well, but I opted to go with Tate’s pedigree as an Ohio State receiver.
Francis Mauigoa (OT/G, Miami)
Mauigoa (pronounced Mau-e-no-a), has been brought up quite often with respect to the Giants and their potential needs along the offensive line.
Mauigoa is a stout offensive lineman who’s played more than 2,600 snaps at right tackle over the last three season. He’s a powerful run blocker at 6-foot-6, 315 pounds and also a reliable pass protector at the collegiate level, giving up just three sacks and four hits over the last two seasons.
There’s a belief that Mauigoa’s frame and demeanor can also translate inside to guard. Whether that means that Mauigoa could perhaps start his career at guard for a team like the Giants and eventually move to right tackle, or whether he’s viewed as a “guard only” will have a profound effect on his draft stock. Mauigoa could be a viable option at No. 5 if he tests well at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine. However, if he doesn’t prove to have the foot quickness and lower-body fluidity to be an offensive tackle, he could be more of a mid-first round pick. He could still be an excellent guard, but the fact that he hasn’t played the position could knock him down draft boards.
Utah’s Spencer Fano could also be an option for the Giants, however he’s likely a pure tackle. I opted for Mauigoa due to his potential versatility to fit with, and possibly succeed, Jermaine Eluemunor.
Caleb Downs (S, Ohio State)
Downs is, in a vacuum, one of the five best players in the draft, at least at this point in the process. Careful study of the All-22 tape may reveal some flaws in his game or show off the play of other prospects to boost him above him, but right now it’s fairly safe to call him one of the few “blue chip” prospects in this year’s draft.
Downs has prototypical size (estimated at 6-foot, 205 pounds), great instincts and communication skills, and high upside as a zone defender as well as in run support. There’s some question as to whether he has the range to be a true center field safety in a Cover 1, but that might not be much of an issue if the Giants play more Cover 2, Cover 4, or 2-Man in 2026.
The quartet of Jevon Holland, Caleb Downs, Tyler Nubin, and Dru Phillips could be excellent. However, the question the Giants — and every other team in the top 10 — will need to answer is “how high can you draft a safety?”
Fifth overall is the same spot where Sean Taylor and Eric Berry were drafted. Drafting Downs this highly would put an expectation of perennial All-Pro seasons on him, and could be akin to drafting Saquon Barkley in the top-5.
While great safeties can add pages to a defensive playbook and take them out of an offensive playbook, they generally don’t make a direct impact on a down-to-down basis. That limits their value in the eyes of many teams.
Peter Woods (iDL, Clemson)
I mentioned in our look at Todd McShay’s first mock draft that I’m not sure that the Giants haven’t fallen into a no-man’s land between value and need.
Woods is generally expected to be the first defensive tackle off the board, and was considered to be one of the very best prospects in the draft prior to the 2025 season. He was expected to be the best player on the best defensive front in college football before the season started, but he took a fairly significant step backward in 2025 and didn’t have much impact.
Woods could still be in consideration for the Giants if he has a strong draft process and tests well at the Combine. This is the spot where Mason Graham was drafted a year ago, and Woods doesn’t seem to be that caliber of prospect at this point. However, he does highlight the potential disconnect between the Giants’ draft position and their perceived needs.
Rueben Bain Jr. (EDGE, Miami)
Rueben Bain Jr. is an absolute bully off the edge. He’s a stout edge defender who’s listed at 6-foot-3, 270 pounds, and has the power his frame would suggest, as well as surprising bend and burst that it might not. He has a 23.7% pass rush win rate and is credited with 60 hurries by PFF. For reference, Abul Carter had a 22.6% win rate and 43 hurries his final year at Penn State.
I’ll admit, I did save this one for last for a reason. It’s likely that the best players on the board for the Giants will be defenders, and edge defenders at that. The Giants are, obviously, very well stocked at the edge position with Brian Burns playing at a DPOY level, Abdul Carter playing at a DROY level, and Kayvon Thibodeaux capable of producing double-digit sack seasons as well as game-changing plays.
I still believe that a trade down is the best course of action for the Giants, and it’s possible that a team further down the draft board could be interested in trading up for a player like Bain Jr. or David Bailey of Texas Tech. The other possibility is that if the Giants have a significant change in defensive scheme, they could look to add Bain Jr. themselves and move Kayvon Thibodeaux to a team like the Ravens, Vikings, Panthers, or Chargers. The Giants would be creating a need to fit the value, but also delaying a big second contract as well as add draft capital. This option doesn’t exactly build the team, but it can help them add depth and get more bites of the apple.
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