Giants Mock Draft Watch: Projected to Land Ole Miss DT Will Echoles

With only one week of the 2026 season behind them, the NFL Draft may seem distant for the New York Giants, but the journey could soon reveal some of their biggest needs next April.

The Giants feel pretty confident they've found their franchise quarterback in Jaxson Dart, who is looking to take a big leap in his development under head coach John Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Matt Nagy.

Part of their efforts to help the young signal caller in year two came from surrounding him with an upgraded offensive line and a group of receiving weapons whose abilities could carry more of the playmaking load off Dart's shoulders.

Even as Week 1 showed the franchise and the fans promise, there is still work to be done on the defensive end. In particu

Giants Add to the Defensive Front in New Mock Draft

Jul 22, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Ole Miss defensive tackle Will Echoles (52) speaks to the press during SEC Football Kickoff Media Day at the Tampa Marriott. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

CBS Sports identified the Giants as a franchise that will likely need to focus on the defensive line by the end of the season and projected them to select Ole Miss defensive tackle Will Echoles at the No. 10 pick of their newest mock draft.

"It is unlikely that the Giants arrive at a point where they are willing to move on from Jaxson Dart, so the emphasis would be on upgrading the supporting cast. The Giants never adequately addressed the loss of Dexter Lawrence, so Will Echoles is a part of that long-term vision," mock curator Josh Edwards said in his analysis of Big Blue's selection.

For the Giants defense, replacing a massive defensive piece with the size and talent of Lawrence's caliber was going to be difficult. The team's breakup with the Pro Bowl defensive tackle came quickly, leading them to address the hole with two veterans, DJ Reader and Shelby Harris, via free agency.

Reader signed to a two-year deal, but one has to wonder how much tread will be left on his tires by the time he turns 34 at the end of his contract. Harris is playing on a one-year deal, essentially making him a rental while New York sees what they have with rookie sixth-round pick Bobby Jamison-Travis.

With several key veterans headed to the open market in the 2027 offseason, acquiring young talent to develop in the long run could be critical for the Giants, including up front, where they've spent too long in the basement of the NFL.

Edwards' mock draft projects the Giants to hold the 10th overall selection, which would suggest they made some strides in Harbaugh's first season as coach. That would make it the perfect time to snag a top interior defender to strengthen the roster for a deeper run.

It would be the perfect time to snag a top interior defender when the first several selections figure to feature a run on quarterbacks going to needy teams.

Echoles, a junior standing 6-foot-3 and 315 pounds, is currently ranked the No. 15 prospect in the 2027 class and the third-best at his position after a breakout sophomore campaign in which he made 42 tackles against the run with only 10 misses and earned an 83.3 PFF run defense grade.

Echoles' size and improvement in the trenches would be a strong asset for the Giants defense, but he also has acumen in the pass rush. He added six sacks and 33 total pressures, leading the Rebels' defensive line and finishing third-best among defensive tackles with at least 300 pass-rush snaps in the nation.

The Giants got off to a pretty solid start against the Cowboys' rushing attack last Sunday, holding five different ball carriers to 18 carries for 69 yards and an average of 3.8 yards per attempt. Their trench stonewalling put Dallas in a hole early in the game, forcing them away from the mode of operation they used to dominate the Giants.

One week into the regular season won't dictate how the year will go for the unit or whether the Giants must address it at the top of the draft. If they want to get to the place Harbaugh is trying to lead them, they'll need to shore up the middle of a defense that's been a punching bag over the past few seasons.

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