Caleb Downs and Two Other Buckeyes Make Sense As Second Overall NFL Draft Pick

There’s a good chance an Ohio State Buckeye will be drafted second overall in April’s NFL Draft. Whether that Buckeye is Caleb Downs or someone else remains to be seen.

And though the New York Jets currently hold the second selection, there’s no guarantee that the player selected, Buckeye or not, will be playing professionally in the Big Apple.

With no quarterback other than Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza viewed as a surefire first-round pick, the QB-needy Jets will surely be active in attempting to slide down the draft board to accumulate extra draft picks. Should the Jets swap the pick and move down, they’ll likely need to stay within the first ten picks to add one of Ohio State’s top prospects.

Assuming they stay at two, at least three Ohio State players should be in consideration for head coach Aaron Glenn’s second season at the helm.

The most popular choice is edge Arvell Reese. He’s a rare athlete who possesses elite size (6-foot-4, 240 pounds) and speed and was often unblockable during the 2025 season. Reese is a plug-and-play guy who would immediately upgrade a porous defense that had the second-fewest sacks in the NFL last season (26). Reese, by comparison, had 6.5 himself last fall.

Downs Played His Final Two Seasons At Ohio State After Transferring From Alabama

An argument could be made for New York to pass on Reese but stay with defense and select safety Caleb Downs, considered by many to be the cleanest prospect in the draft. Downs, the 2025 Jim Thorpe Award and Lott Trophy winner, has a football IQ that is off the charts. He’s rarely out of position and has flashed playmaking ability the few times teams have been brave enough to test him. His three-year college career included six interceptions, three forced fumbles and a sack and a half. Downs also returned two punts for scores. Considering the Jets defense did not intercept a pass last season and gave up 31 points per game, Downs would be an easy choice to anchor the defense for the next decade.

If not Reese or Downs, the Jets could opt to give their offense a spark with the draft’s best receiver, Carnell Tate.

The 6-foot-2 former Buckeye is a smooth route runner with exceptional hands and big-play ability. During his final Buckeye season last fall, Tate averaged 17.5 yards per catch and caught 14 touchdowns over his three college seasons. Considering the Jets averaged just over 17 points per game, and no pass catcher scored more than four receiving touchdowns, caught more than 44 passes or totaled more than 395 receiving yards, Tate would be a massive upgrade.

New York needs help everywhere, and Ohio State just so happens to have plenty players capable of lending a hand.