The 2025 NFL season is fully in the books, with the Seattle Seahawks beating the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl
The order for the 2026 NFL Draft is now set, so we wanted to kick things off with a six-round mock draft for the New York Giants.
As usual, I used the mock draft machine from PFSN for this mock.
For context, I’m assuming that the Giants re-sign Jermaine Eluemunor to play right tackle, as well as Wan’Dale Robinson. I’ll also assume that the Giants make at least one big free agent signing, likely in the secondary. I’m going to pick Tariq Woolen to replace Cor’Dale Flott at cornerback.
Riq Woolen has spent the last two years in a “Baltimore Adjacent” defense and should be able to make the leap over to what Dennard Wilson wants to call without much of a learning curve. All signs point to the Giants wanting to be aggressive and physical in coverage, between what Wilson wanted, but was unable to, run in Tennessee and the tight, aggressive man coverage taught by Addison Lynch in Denver. Woolen’s rare blend of size, length, and athleticism — as well as his ball skills — makes him an attractive option if the Giants want a bigger player than Flott and don’t want to give Tae Banks a chance to get his career back on track.
I’m also instituting a “No Trades” clause for this mock. Those will come later, and I’m actually interested in seeing just how far fans are willing to trade down if the opportunity presents itself.
But now, on with the mock!
Round 1 (No. 5) – Francis Mauigoa, OL, Miami
As things stand right now, the Giants don’t have a right guard and even though Jermaine Eluemunor is back in the fold for this draft, I don’t know how long he’ll be a viable starter.
Unlike Todd McShay, I can’t count on Marcus Mbow at guard after watching him be stressed by 270-pound defensive ends. And while I’m not sure if Mauigoa will ever be an NFL offensive tackle, I can at least hope he can be a Zack Martin or Brandon Scherff.
Carnell Tate was off the board here (No. 2 overall to the New York Jets), and I ultimately decided to pass on Jordyn Tyson in this draft. That said, I have my fingers crossed I can find some help for Jaxson Dart in the second round.
Also considered – Jordyn Tyson (WR, Arizona State)
Round 2 (No. 37) – Lee Hunter, iDL, Texas Tech
My hopes for offensive help were dashed by a massive run on wide receivers at the end of the first round and top of the second and frankly, there wasn’t an offensive player available who even came close to making sense here.
I can’t grumble too much, as I simply love Hunter. He reminds me of Dalvin Tomlinson or John Hankins as a “Dancing Bear” of a nose tackle who can stuff the run as well as collapse the pocket. Hunter is capable as an A or B-gap defender, allowing him to fit into a rotation with Dexter Lawrence and Darius Alexander.
Also considered – Omar Cooper (WR, Indiana)
Round 4 (No. 104) – Bud Clark, S, TCU
There wasn’t really a question as to who I was going to pick when Clark was available. Clark, alongside Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez, is one of the most instinctive playmakers in the draft. He has plenty of athleticism to act on his instincts and is a ball magnet who can play Cover 2, Cover 3, Cover 4, or Cover 6 shells.
Clark is a little lean, however he’s a smart, high-effort defender, a willing tackler, and a leader in addition to being a playmaker.
If folks were wondering why I passed on Caleb Downs, it’s because I knew I could get a player like Clark or Dillon Theineman later on who could be nearly as good for a much better value.
Also considered – Nobody
Round 5 (No. 143) – Tanner Koziol, TE, Houston
At this point I simply had to do something on the offensive side of the ball. Koziol is not a blocker, at all, but he has upside as a receiving tight end. Theo Johnson drops far too many passes for me to rely on him as a primary receiving threat (as does Darius Slayton) and Thomas Fidone II is a complete unknown here.
Also considered – Nicholas Singleton (RB, Penn State), Jordan Hudson (WR, SMU)
Round 6 (No. 184) – Cole Payton, QB, North Dakota State
The Giants only have two quarterbacks on their roster, and while having a starting caliber backup like Jameis Winston is great, the Giants may want to develop a player more like Dart.
Payton has a very similar build to Dart at 6-foot-2, 225 pounds with a strong arm and great mobility. He’s a powerful runner who can also pick up chunk yardage if he finds daylight. Payton made waves at the Senior Bowl, however he only has one year of experience, and at the FCS level at that. The upside is there to be a good backup for Dart, or a long-term investment in future draft capital.
Also considered – Adam Randall (RB, Clemson)
Round 6 (No. 190) – Adam Randall, RB, Clemson
Finally, a gamble paid off for me, and one of the players I was hoping to land fell to me.
Like Tyrone Tracy, Randall will enter the NFL with just one year of exerience at running back. His inexperience at the position, however, belies already great vision, patience, contact balance, power, and speed. He’s also (obviously) a natural pass catcher out of the backfield who can motion out wide or into the slot.
He’s a big back at 6-foot-2, 235 pounds, and brings an element of size that neither Cam Skattebo or Tracy quite possess, while also allowing the Giants to keep their playbook wide open with three good receiving backs.
Round 6 (No. 191) – Lewis Bond, WR, Boston College)
I didn’t bother with an “also considered” at 190 because I have consecutive picks here. Lewis is my stab at finding a receiver with the potential to be a gem.
Bond will probably be viewed as more of a slot receiver at the NFL level at 5-foot-11, 190 pounds. He’s been highly dependable for BC, catching at least 50 passes a year over the last three seasons, and has at least 640 yards in each of those years. He wouldn’t unseat Wan’Dale Robinson, however he might be useful as a special teams player or depth in case of injury.
Raptor’s thoughts
There will be a lot of fans who love this draft, and I can’t say that I hate it. I’m a fan of pretty much every player I drafted and I feel as though I got strong value throughout. Lee Hunter, Bud Clark, and Adam Randall are three of my absolute favorite prospects.
The problem is that, once again, the Giants are pouring resources into a defense that has already seen two or three times the investment as the offense over the last couple years (more on that another day). Yes, recency bias with the Seahawks’ dominant defensive performance against the Patriots is in full effect, however I fully believe that (with re-signing Micah McFadden and Riq Woolen in the fold) the Giants have the makings of a Top-10 or Top 5 defense right now. I maintain that the single biggest issue with the Giants’ defense last year was coaching, and spending many more resources on the defense is like hack golfer thinking a new driver will fix his game, as opposed to getting lessons.
Frankly, I can’t help but feel like running essentially the same offensive roster back for the third year in a row — except likely shedding talent if the Giants move on from Daniel Bellinger and Devin Singletary — is managerial malpractice.
To quote John Harbaugh, it’s all about the quarterback. I legitimately fear for Jaxson Dart’s long-term health if the Giants once again force him to put his health on the line to create magic and compensate for an offensive roster with a single reliable weapon that now carries an injury red flag.
Hopefully Dart would be able to stay in one piece — and the tertiary options productive enough — long enough to try and build around him again next year.
But… The board fell the way the board fell.
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