In four games of the John Harbaugh era, rookie linebacker Arvell Reese has emerged as an early candidate for defensive rookie of the year, leading the New York Giants with nine tackles in each of the last two weeks and coming up big for the G-Men.
It still blows my mind that the Jets passed on Reese for Texas Tech’s David Bailey with the second overall pick, letting the Ohio State product fall to the Giants.
Don’t get me wrong, Bailey has looked good this season, but Reese keeps impressing every week and most recently earned defensive rookie of the year honors after a dominant Week 4 performance that made Big Blue fans believe he could do even more.
The sky is the limit for Arvell Reese entering Week 5
Reese’s DROW honor last week was well deserved: he played 63 snaps and recorded nine tackles, a tackle for a loss, an interception, three pass breakups, and two pressures, including a forced interception when he hit Jacoby Brissett’s arm on a throw that Greg Newsome II intercepted.
The rookie keeps stacking impressive plays, and Big Blue will need him to keep doing it if they want to make a playoff push, which is still a real possibility even without Jaxson Dart.
PFF gave the 21-year-old the third-highest defensive grade among rookie linebackers this season, 77.1, and named him to its 2nd-team All-Pro defense through the first quarter.
The Giants’ Week 5 matchup against the Commanders should be an interesting divisional game, and one storyline is which Ohio State rookie linebacker will shine more: Reese or Sonny Styles, who the G-Men also expressed interest in throughout the pre-draft process.
With Brian Burns sidelined for the remainder of the season, someone in Dennard Wilson’s talented pass rush will have to step up week by week, and right now it’s been No. 52. Kayvon Thibodeaux has been a non-factor so far. Abdul Carter has shown flashes but has been inconsistent, making Reese one of New York's standout defenders.
It’s a long season, but the Giants keep winning as they are in sole possession of first place in the NFC East for the first time since November 2015. Reese stays consistent on defense and helps Big Blue win these games; he continues to force three-and-outs and turnovers, as he did in Week 4, so it will be hard to ignore his name for DROY honors and possibly more accolades down the road.
Draft analysts were shocked when Reese fell to the Giants at No. 5 in April. Now, he's showing those top four teams why they should have thought twice before passing him up.
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