New Mock Draft Has Giants Passing on Sonny Styles in Favor of Offense

Passing on Sonny Styles would be a mistake given his versatility.

Feb 25, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles (LB25) speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Yes, the New York Giants defense still needs some pieces to boost the overall talent level, but in a  new mock draft by Pro Football Sports Network, analyst Ian Cummings has other ideas for Big Blue at No. 5.

Cummings, in his seven-round mock draft, passed on Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles for the Giants and instead went with one of Styles’s Buckeyes teammates, receiver Carnell Tate, and with good reason.

“The Giants still have an abundance of needs as they prepare for quarterback Jaxson Dart's second season, but the priority in the 2026 NFL Draft, particularly with wide receiver Malik Nabers coming back from a season-ending injury, should be insulating Dart with playmaking support,” Cummings said.

To further reinforce his argument in support of Tate for the Giants, Cummings added, “At 6-foot-2, 193 pounds, Carnell Tate … has the elite separation ability and catch-point conversion to be a true WR1, but he's positioned even better with a player like Nabers stressing defenses across from him.”

While there is no question about Tate being a top-end receiver who could fill the X-receiver role for the Giants, we’re not so sure that is the best move for New York, considering they added Darnell Mooney and Calvin Austin III in free agency.

Although both of those veterans were added on one-year deals, they figure to be moved around like chess pieces in the new Giants offense that offensive coordinator Matt Nagy is designing.

Why Styles is a better option

Dec 31, 2025; Arlington, TX, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes defensive end Kenyatta Jackson Jr. (97) and linebacker Sonny Styles (0) get into position during the 2025 Cotton Bowl and quarterfinal game of the College Football Playoff at AT&T Stadium. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Styles, whom Cummings had going to the Chiefs at No. 9, might be a better value for the Giants at No. 5. In looking at what Cummings had to say about Styles to the Chiefs, his evaluation is the exact reason why the Giants might covet him.

Styles is an alien size-speed specimen, a masterful gap reader and block stacker, and he produced at a high rate on blitz reps in 2024,” Cummings said.

Styles, a converted safety, has conjured up comparisons to Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton, who was a first-round draft pick during Harbaugh’s time in Baltimore and who was that proverbial chess piece in the Ravens defense.

And Styles recently told Kay Adams of Up & Adams that he would love to follow in Hamilton’s footsteps and be that chess piece for a defense.

“I’d love to be in a scheme where I can do multiple roles and help a defense win,” he said.

“I think what’s nice is when you have a coordinator who’s able to put you in so many different positions and utilize you in that way, it’s helping the entire defense because you become more unpredictable when there are guys like that on your defense who can do so many different things.”

The question, though, is whether the Giants would spend that high of a pick on an off-ball linebacker?

“This is a class where to me this is a class where positional value should go out the window for teams,” said Locked On NFL Draft co-host and Bleacher Report Senior Draft Scout Damian Parson.

“I know there are a lot of people who have the new team building mindset of, ‘Hey, well I'm paying a rookie inside the top 5 this amount of money, and I don't wanna pay an off-ball linebacker that type of money.’

“But in my opinion, this isn't the class to pass up great talent. If you get a chance to get one of the best players in the class, get that player.”

Rounds 2-7

The rest of Cummings’s selections for the Giants are as follows:

• Round 2, No. 37: IOL Keylan Rutledge, Georgia Tech  
• Round 4, No. 105: SAF Bud Clark, TCU  
• Round 5, No. 145: CB Devon Moore, Florida
• Round 6, No. 186: SAF Jakobe Thomas, Miami (Fla.)  
• Round 6, No. 192: OT Alex Wollschaleger, Kentucky  
• Round 6, No. 193: OL Trey Zuhn, Texas A&M

We like the second-round pick at guard, but as for the rest of the picks, we just don’t see the Giants not spending a pick on a defensive lineman somewhere along the draft, rather than opting for two safeties and three total offensive linemen.

Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news, and send your mailbag questions to us.