What to Expect From the Giants' 2026 Rookie Class

The New York Giants put together an impressive-looking draft class this year, finding value with each of their seven selections. Each rookie has a shot to be a significant contributor in John Harbaugh's first year at the helm.

The question becomes what kind of role each rookie might have in his first season. There are only so many starting spots to be won, and in some cases, the depth at a rookie’s position is so loaded that a roster spot on the 53-man squad might not even be a given.

Let’s run down each rookie draft pick’s chances of landing a starting job and what, if any, obstacles he might face.

R1: ILB Arvell Reese

May 21, 2026; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants linebacker Arvell Reese (52) participates in a drill during organized team activities at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. | John Jones-Imagn Images

You don't spend the fifth overall draft pick on a guy you plan on keeping on the bench. But aside from that, Reese was one of the most dynamic athletes in the class and could dominate at multiple positions.

His ability to line up all over the formation, which is something head coach John Harbaugh said would be the case, gives defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson a lot more options to unleash on unsuspecting offenses.

That's especially true on third down, where, given his versatility, Reese can become a nice little weapon for when Wilson wants to disguise what he’s sending at the unsuspecting quarterback across the line of scrimmage.

Unless Reese is injured, he’s starting on this defense.

R1: OL Francis Mauigoa

May 9, 2026; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa (65) speaks during a press conference at rookie minicamp at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. | John Jones-Imagn Images

The Giants traded Dexter Lawrence, their best defender of the last half-decade, to acquire the pick they used to draft offensive lineman Mauigoa. And it just so happened that the tenth overall pick they received in that trade has brought them the guy they hope will be their starting right guard for the foreseeable future.

Although Mauigoa has been a college tackle–he’s played maybe four snaps at guard in a live game–the nearly 6-foot-6, 329-pound rookie is a prototype in terms of what John Harbaugh prefers in his offensive linemen: a big, block-out-the-sun, physical people mover who is going to knock an opponent backward when he makes contact.

The Giants' interior offensive line last year lacked that type of consistent punch.

If they’re eyeing a power running game as is anticipated, they need offensive linemen who can double as human bulldozers while also holding their ground in pass protection, which is what Mauigoa’s profile suggests he can bring.

The only way we see him not starting is if he struggles in his transition to guard. Mauigoa and offensive line coach Mike Bloomgren have both spoken about one of the biggest adjustments to moving inside: working with less space.

The hope is that, with plenty of reps this summer, any hiccups Mauigoa has experienced with that adjustment will subside.

R2: CB Colton Hood

Jun 3, 2026; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants cornerback Colton Hood (12) participates in drills during organized team activities at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

The Giants have a vacancy at right cornerback following the free-agency departure of Cor’Dale Flott to Tennessee, and Harbaugh said right from the get-go that the expectation was for Hood, the team’s second-round pick, to compete for the starting job.

One of the strengths of Hood’s game has been his run defense and the physicality he brings to it. Last year, the Giants cornerbacks combined for 12 tackles for loss in run support.

But even more concerning was the number of times the cornerbacks on the team made initial contact with the ball carrier only to fail to bring him down, which, per PFF data, happened 45 times against the run.

Hood recorded 20 stops last season for the Vols, only missing four tackles in the process.

Despite that promise, a couple of things stand in the way of Hood winning a starting job. The first is a lack of experience. In three seasons with three different college programs, he played just 1,150 defensive snaps, including 691 in coverage.

While he did post an impressive 65.9 career coverage grade, the Giants might want to roll with experience at cornerback, at least to get them through the start of the season against two tough opponents (the Dallas Cowboys and the Los Angeles Rams).

In addition, veteran Deonte Banks is coming off one of his best spring showings since his rookie campaign.

Wilson’s defensive system seems to be a better fit for Banks’s talents, and after having his option year declined, Banks has been a man on a mission to set himself up for his next contract.

R3: WR Malachi Fields

Jun 9, 2026; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Malachi Fields (0) participates in drills during the minicamp activities at Quest Diagnostics Center. | Thomas Salus-Imagn Images

Lingering concerns surrounding Malik Nabers’s return from an ACL tear have opened up a door for Fields, who had a solid showing in the spring practices.

As general manager Joe Schoen said after the Giants drafted Fields, the former Notre Dame wideout gives the Giants "a different body type" than they previously had. Not only is he a vertical threat in the passing game, but Fields also brings significant juice as a run blocker.

Per PFF, he graded out as one of the best run-blocking receivers in college football in each of the last two years, one of several reasons why the Giants gave up a haul to get him in the third round of this year’s draft.

Fields is also a contested catch specialist, having posted a career 47.3% catch rate on 50/50 balls. His physicality is also present in his game–Fields forced 29 missed tackles over his career, a stat that, outside of Wan’Dale Robinson, who has since left the team via free agency, has struggled to get out of its receiver group.

Despite Fields’s promise, that didn’t stop the Giants from adding veteran receivers Odell Beckham Jr. and JuJu Smith-Schuster.

Fields is going to have a role in the offense, and in fact might develop nicely into a legitimate No. 2 receiver. We don’t think he’s going to be a starter, at least not initially, but we do think he’ll have a role in the passing game as his physicality and size are just what the Giants need.

R6: DT Bobby Jamison-Travis

Defensive lineman Bobby Johnson-Travis | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Giants added veteran nose tackle DJ Reader to the roster on a two-year contract to fill the void after trading away Dexter Lawrence.

That move right there is a clear indication that, despite NFL.com draft analyst Chad Reuter’s inclusion of Bobby Jamison-Travis on his list of 16 Day 3 NFL rookies who could emerge as a starter, the Giants see things differently.

Jamison-Travis rarely saw first-team snaps during the spring practices open to the media. Moreover, the Giants brought in several veteran defensive linemen to create competition, which typically isn’t a good sign for a Day 3 rookie looking to make an impact.

That said, Jamison-Travis is a solid run stopper, which, of course, has been a problem for the Giants for multiple years now. The rookie posted an 84.6 run defense grade from PFF in 2025 and recorded 32 career STOPs with just a 5.4% missed tackle rate.

If Jamison-Travis is going to earn a role on the 53-man roster, chances are it will be as a two-down run stuffer, where this team seemingly just hasn’t had enough in recent years.

R6: OL J.C. Davis

Offensive lineman J.C. Davis | Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images

J.C. Davis comes from a college program where his versatility was one of his best traits. And while that versatility to work at either guard or tackle spot isn’t going away, his first season in the NFL is probably going to be spent having him focus on one position rather than putting too much on his plate at once.

That one spot might be a guard. New York already has Mauigoa written in ink as their starter on the right side, whereas on the left side, as of now, incumbent Jon Runyan is the starting left guard.

The team also has some veteran depth at that spot, including Daniel Faalele, Lucas Patrick, and Aaron Stinnie, plus they brought back Evan Neal and Joshua Ezeudu, both of whom are listed as guards.

That seems like a mountain of depth to overcome for Davis, who started 24 games at left tackle for Illinois, where he also earned AP First Team All-Big Ten honors last season.

If tackle is his position, Davis, who finished as PFF’s fifth-best-graded offensive tackle nationally, will need to show he’s a better option than Marcus Mbow, who right now is the top candidate to be the swing tackle behind starters Jermaine Eluemunor and Andrew Thomas.

Davis is big and physical, but his collegiate tape shows a lack of refinement. Right now, he seems to be more of a project than an immediate depth piece, and the Giants would likely look to other veteran options at a unit whose five members better be up to snuff in pass protection if this offense is going to hum this coming season.

R6: ILB Jack Kelly

May 21, 2026; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants linebacker Jack Kelly (51) participates in a drill during organized team activities at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. | John Jones-Imagn Images

Jack Kelly has been running with the second-team defense, along with Micah McFadden, this spring.

While we won’t go so far as to say that Kelly is ahead of McFadden on the depth chart at the moment as the No. 3 inside linebacker, if he passes McFadden on the depth chart this summer, all it would take is an injury to one of the starters for him to land in the starting lineup.

Realistically speaking, Kelly’s biggest contribution to start will be on special teams, where he excelled at BYU.

But don’t rule out the possibility of him earning snaps as a nickel linebacker, as he has better-than-average short-area quickness, blitzing ability and physicality needed for the role.

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