We’re gearing up for the 2026 NFL Free Agency period, when talk of the 2026 NFL Draft will be put on hold for a few days. However we also have the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine looming, the next major milestone on the path to the draft.
It’s understood that the New York Giants draft strategy will be heavily influenced by their moves in free agency. Their perceived needs now are unlikely to be their perceived needs a month from now. But with that in mind we still have to take note when one of the heavy hitters releases a mock draft. They’re often informed by league intel as by player evaluations.
NFL Network draft expert, and former NFL scout, Daniel Jeremiah dropped his Mock Draft 2.0 on Tuesday morning.
Jeremiah makes a familiar pick for the Giants, giving them Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate.
5. New York Giants – Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State
The Giants add another weapon for Jaxson Dart. Tate gives the offense a vertical receiver to play opposite a hopefully-healthy Malik Nabers.
Chris’ thoughts
I’ll start off by saying that I don’t disagree with the pick one bit. There are some who would scoff at the idea of spending a high pick on a “WR2”, however that’s underselling the potential and impact of a player like Tate. He would likely be considered a true “Number 1” if it weren’t for the presence of monster sophomore Jeremiah Smith, and
Tate is a safer pick than Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson due to injury concerns and a high-ceiling, high-floor player. I He has the potential to be a player similar to A.J. Green or Tee Higgins across from Malik Nabers, combining rock-solid possession receiving (87.5% contested catch win rate and 0.0% drop rate) with big-play potential (37th in deep targets, 33rd in deep yardage).
The presence of a player like Tate would make the Giants’ offense a real headache for defenses. Or, as Giants’ legend Eli Manning put it,
“I definitely agree that they probably need a true No. 2 to go with Malik Nabers,” Manning told SportsBoom.
“Some of the best offenses are doing that. I don’t know if they need to do that in the draft, or it kind of depends on free agency. I wouldn’t mind if there’s a good free agent receiver that could be that No. 2 — kind of that 1B almost.”
If the Giants re-sign Wan’Dale Robinson, they would have two players who command double teams in Nabers and Tate, as well as a dangerous Swiss Army Knife in Robinson. That would make blitzing Jaxson Dart a chancy proposition at best, as it would take a player out of coverage, and very few defenses have the depth to match up. Sending pressure would mean single covering one of the receivers, or taking a linebacker away from covering one of the Giants’ running backs or tight ends — or create opportunities for Dart to pick up yards himself.
Interestingly, we’ve seen a recent trend for the Giants to be given Ohio State safety Caleb Downs. However, Jeremiah has Downs dropping all the way down to the Miami Dolphins at 10th overall. It’s unclear whether that’s due to league perceptions of Downs’ value as a safety, or whether opinions are shifting as evaluators are digging into Downs’ tape.
See More:
