The 2026 NFL Draft is drawing closer, and our weekly New York Giants mock drafts are beginning to feel less like dart throws and more like predictions. Let\u2019s see how this week\u2019s full six-round mock turned out.<\/p>\n
I used the Pro Football and Sports Network mock draft simulator, with a Consensus Big Board.<\/p>\n
Round 1 (No. 5) \u2014 Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State<\/p>\n
While I was open to trading down a couple of spots, I rejected offers from the Dallas Cowboys to move to No. 12 and the Detroit Lions to move to No. 17. I really had no desire to leave the top 10.<\/p>\n
The first four picks were:<\/p>\n
Raiders \u2014 Fernando Mendoza, QB, IndianaJets \u2014 Arvell Reese, OLB, Ohio StateCardinals \u2014 Reuben Bain, Edge, MiamiTitans \u2014 Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame<\/p>\n
I proposed trading down with both the New Orleans Saints at No. 8, and the Kansas City Chiefs at No. 9. Some simulators will OK a deal of No. 5 to New Orleans for picks 8 and 42. The PFSN simulator, using the Rich Hill trade chart, wouldn\u2019t bite.<\/p>\n
I decided at that point not to force a trade by either not getting as much as I wanted or giving up more than I wanted. I stayed put and took Styles.<\/p>\n
I have been consistent that I will take Styles over Caleb Downs every time, and I am sticking with that here.<\/p>\n
Brian Baldinger certainly approves:<\/p>\n
Other players considered: Caleb Downs, safety, Ohio State; Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State, Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU; Francis Mauigoa, OT, Miami<\/p>\n
Round 2 (No. 37) \u2014 TRADE!!!<\/p>\n
Giants get: Picks 41 (Round 2) and 91 (Round 3) | Value received per Rich Hill trade chart: 192 points
Buffalo Bills get: Pick No. 37 | Value received: 168 points<\/p>\n
This is a great spot for a small trade down by GM Joe Schoen. In doing these mocks on a weekly basis, I know that there are a plethora of good options here for New York.<\/p>\n
I have not been certain a trade down at No. 37 could net the Giants the third-round pick they enter the draft without. Usually, that requires moving down farther than I am comfortable. Here, a small move back nets the result I was hoping for.<\/p>\n
The Bills wanted edge defender Cashius Howell badly enough to make this move. The four players who were selected from 37-40 \u2014 Howell, wide receiver Chris Brazzell, edge defender Zion Young, edge defender R Mason Thomas \u2014 are all players I would not have considered at No. 37. That is an added bonus of making the move \u2014my board did not change at all.<\/p>\n
Round 2 (No. 41) \u2014 Colton Hood, CB, Tennessee<\/p>\n
I select one of the available guards \u2014 usually Emmanuel Pregnon of Oregon or Chase Bisontis of Texas A&M \u2014 in this spot nearly every time.<\/p>\n
Hood could challenge Greg Newsome II for a job as a starting boundary cornerback. If he were selected here, he might even be expected to win that job.<\/p>\n
Colton Hood began his collegiate career at Auburn, before transferring to Colorado to join a talented secondary alongside Travis Hunter and DJ McKinney. Rotating in between two high-profile NFL Draft prospects, Hood managed to produce on his own in 2024, earning honorable mention All-Big 12 recognition. He used that momentum to transfer a second time in 2025, making the move to Tennessee in the SEC.<\/p>\n
With the Volunteers, Hood was again expected to be a CB2 playing across from Jermod McCoy, but McCoy\u2019s early-season injury thrust Hood into a CB1 role, where he thrived. In 2025, Hood racked up an INT, eight pass breakups, and 4.5 TFLs, while earning a near-elite PFSN CB Impact score of 87.3. At 6\u20190\u201d, 195 pounds, Hood has an enticing blend of explosiveness, corrective twitch, reactive coil, proportional length, and physicality.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s still learning to play with more patience and discipline, but he possesses clear early-round ability, with his coverage mobility as the foundation. Hood can stick to WRs in press-man, as well as suddenly redirect and explode through breaks in off-man and zone. His playmaking ability is stamped at the catch point, and he\u2019s a consistent tackler in support as well.<\/p>\n
In time, Hood has the potential to become a high-end starter with inbuilt schematic versatility.<\/p>\n
Other players considered: Emmanuel Pregnon, G, Oregon; Chase Bisontis, G, Texas A&M; Christen Miller, DT, Georgia; Chris Bell, WR, Louisville; Germie Bernard, WR, Alabama<\/p>\n
Round 3 (No. 91) \u2014 Jalen Farmer, G, Kentucky<\/p>\n
This, of course, is the pick I added in my trade with the Bills. Thank you, Buffalo!<\/p>\n
Farmer is likely a cut below Pregnon, Bisontis, Gennings Dunker, and Keylan Rutledge as a prospect. Nevertheless, guard is a need and Farmer has upside that is intriguing.<\/p>\n
Jalen Farmer declared for the 2026 NFL Draft as a redshirt junior, after starting two full seasons for the Kentucky Wildcats and earning a strong 87.4 PFSN OL Impact score in his final season. As one might expect from a slightly younger prospect, Farmer is a bit underdeveloped in some technical areas, most notably his hand usage. His inconsistent hand replacement can allow pass-rushers to decouple and generate pressure later in reps, and at times, he\u2019s over-reliant on his explosion and mass as an obstructor in the run game.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, Farmer is a young and ascending prospect with an enticing physical foundation. At 6\u20195\u201d, 317 pounds, he has excellent lean mass, a thick and strong lower body, and good proportional length. With his initial explosion, mass, length, and mean mauler mentality, he can slab interior defenders off the line, as well as torque through and seal off gaps with his core strength.<\/p>\n
And in pass protection, he has a naturally strong anchor and above-average leverage acquisition skills. His game needs more refinement before he can reach his ceiling, but that ceiling is a quality starter.<\/p>\n
Round 4 (No. 105) \u2014 Jalon Kilgore, S, South Carolina<\/p>\n
The Giants spent free agency collecting safeties. Here is one more, a player who possessess versatility John Harbaugh and Dennard Wilson might be attracted to.<\/p>\n
Jalon Kilgore profiles as one of the most unique and multifaceted defensive backs in the 2026 NFL Draft. At 6\u20191\u201d, 219 pounds, with sprawling length and charged-up explosion, he\u2019s taken reps at boundary CB, nickel, box safety, and field safety. Kilgore\u2019s versatility is a testament to his intelligence, vision, and football IQ — all traits that he used in tandem with his physical gifts to rack up three TFLs, five INTs, and five PBUs in 2024.<\/p>\n
And in 2025, he followed up his breakout season with two INTs and 10 pass breakups, along the way earning an elite PFSN DB Impact score of 91.6. While his muscle-bound 211-pound frame imbues his game with modest hip stiffness at times, Kilgore has the corrective and reactive athleticism to match and plant-and-drive overtop stems, and with his closing speed, he can operate as a seam-runner and erase mid-range separation, hawk over ill-fated passes and punish in support. Best as a big-nickel but built with all-encompassing positional flexibility, Kilgore can be a dynamic \u201cglue guy\u201d for an NFL defense.<\/p>\n
NY Giants 2026 NFL Draft scouting report: Jalon Kilgore, DB\/LB, South Carolina<\/a><\/p>\n Round 5 (No. 145) \u2014 Dontay Corleone, DT, Cincinnati<\/p>\n Full disclosure: I thought hard about taking a defensive tackle, probably Chris McClellan of Missouri, at 105. I looked at the board, though, and expected that one of the two nose tackles I am generally drawn to \u2014 Corleone and Tim Keenan of Alabama \u2014 would still be available here.<\/p>\n As it turned out, both were. I choose Corleone.<\/p>\n Dontay Corleone, nicknamed \u201cthe Godfather\u201d, was a standout defender on the CFB stage ever since he set foot on the field at Nippert Stadium. Born and raised in Cincinnati, he had an opportunity to transfer after his three-sack, six-TFL redshirt freshman season, but chose to see out and finish his career with his hometown squad. Later in his career, he never quite recaptured the pass-rushing production that was present early on, but he maintained a presence as a high-quality run defender.<\/p>\n Per TruMedia, he allowed just 1.42 yards per run stop in 2025. At 6\u20190 1\/2\u201d and 340 pounds, Corleone is an incredibly unique archetype at the DT position. He\u2019s stout and squatty, with stellar mass and proportional length, all of which amounts to superb gap control and power absorption at nose tackle.<\/p>\n He\u2019s also flashed legitimate power drive and lower-body activation as a pass-rusher, and can at least squeeze the pocket from the fulcrum and force centers to call for reinforcements. Corleone\u2019s steady regression as a pass-rusher is concerning, however, and it culminated in a 2025 season where he produced an uninspiring 2% true pressure rate, and failed to log a sack. Certain truths have always been evident with Corleone; he has close to average quickness and flexibility, and those qualities were more limiting in 2025.<\/p>\n A blood clot issue in 2024 also bears noting, but Corleone has been \u201call systems go\u201d since. He profiles as an odd-front nose who can function as a tree stump against the run, but is limited with his pass-rush utility.<\/p>\n I keep saying this, but I think the Giants need a real second nose tackle behind Dexter Lawrence. That\u2019s what Corleone would be for.<\/p>\n The Giants still need to address defensive tackle \u2014 here\u2019s how they can<\/a>NY Giants 2026 NFL Draft scouting report: Dontay Corleone, iDL, Cincinnati<\/a><\/p>\n Round 6 (No. 186) \u2014 Jeff Caldwell, WR, Cincinnati<\/p>\n We have apparently gotten stuck in Bearcats country, with two straight picks from Cincinnati. I feel like I have to add to the wide receiver room at some point. Caldwell has an intriguing size-speed profile, and might represent my last chance to snag a receiver I have any real interest in.<\/p>\n Jeff Caldwell is a potential sleeper in the 2026 NFL Draft with a compelling size-speed profile to mold. A late bloomer in high school, Caldwell experienced a senior-year growth spurt that set him behind in the recruiting circuit, and was only given one Division I offer from Lindenwood. He played three years with the Lions, peaking in 2024 with 52 catches for 1,011 yards and 10 touchdowns.<\/p>\n Averaging over 18 yards per catch across his three years in the FCS, Caldwell leveraged his production into a year at Cincinnati. With the Bearcats, he amassed 32 catches for 478 yards and six scores. His 77.7 PFSN WR Impact score was around middle-of-the-pack, but his 2.4 yards per route run hinted at additional efficiency to extract.<\/p>\n At 6\u20195\u201d, 216 pounds, with near-33\u201d arms, Caldwell\u2019s most enthralling quality is his size-adjusted athleticism. At the NFL Combine, he quantified this with a blistering 4.31 40-yard dash, a 1.48 10-yard split, a 42\u201d vertical, and an 11\u20192\u201d broad jump. Caldwell\u2019s size, speed, and burst set him apart, but the rest of his profile still needs work.<\/p>\n He has excellent contortion ability at the catch point, but can be prone to focus drops and inconsistency through contact, and he has room to further excel at controlling the catch point with timing and coordination. His route tree is primarily vertical, and while he has good building blocks, his plant-and-drive footwork and sink can be very inconsistent. Additionally, Caldwell provides relatively little as a RAC threat.<\/p>\n The saving grace for Caldwell is this; he\u2019s a competent run blocker with the tools and temperament to translate. As it stands, he has actionable rotational value as a designated deep threat and possesses run-game implementation, but he needs to refine his three-level profile in order to become more.<\/p>\n Round 6 (No. 192) \u2014 Adam Randall, RB, Cincinnati<\/p>\n I took Randall in Round 6 last week, as well. I just feel like there is potential there, and a body type that will appeal to Harbaugh.<\/p>\n Adam Randall joined the Clemson Tigers as a highly anticipated four-star wide receiver recruit back in 2022. But after hauling in just 48 catches for 533 yards and two touchdowns over his first three seasons, he made the switch to running back in 2025, and it ended up being a career-defining move. Randall ran for 814 yards and 10 TDs on 168 carries, and caught 36 passes for 254 yards and three scores — eclipsing 1,000 yards from scrimmage for the first time in his career — and earned a stellar 83.1 PFSN RB Impact grade.<\/p>\n As one might expect from a young player in just his first year at a position full-time, Randall\u2019s vision and creative instincts are very raw; when he has less space to use and less time to react, he can struggle. However, in space, Randall has the explosiveness, speed, and churning leg drive to chew up space and finish with physicality. He flashes above-average press and stem IQ when approaching blocks 1-on-1, and with his WR background, he\u2019s a naturally versatile pass-catching threat, who also proves competent as a blocker.<\/p>\n In the immediate timeline, Randall serves as a versatile rotational piece, but he has exciting upside if the RB position can slow down for him with more experience.<\/p>\n