Arvell Reese has already been a home run for the New York Giants. Through the first four weeks of the season, the linebacker is already generating Defensive Rookie of the Year buzz. He announced himself to the rest of the league with his performance against the Arizona Cardinals, making plays all over the field.
In a crucial Week 5 matchup with the Washington Commanders, he could take his early-season hype to a whole new level.
Reese should be at the center of defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson's plans to stop Jayden Daniels. If he's up to the challenge, there will be no denying the rookie's stardom.
Arvell Reese is the Giants' key to stopping Jayden Daniels in Week 5
One of the rookie's most impressive traits is his ability to track down ball carriers from sideline to sideline. That will be more important than ever against the Commanders this weekend.
When Daniels doesn't find an open receiver immediately, he often looks to scramble. It's what makes him so dangerous as a player. In each of his three seasons, he has ranked within the top two in the NFL in scramble rate. Per SumerSports, he's scrambling on almost 15% of his dropbacks this year.
If defenses don't account for the quarterback's rushing ability, he can create explosives out of otherwise broken plays. This season, five of his 12 rushing attempts have gone for more than ten yards. It has been one of Washington's most reliable ways to move the ball down the field.
With Stefon Diggs and Terry McLaurin, Daniels' top two wide receivers, banged up going into this game, he may look to scramble at an even higher rate.
Wilson will likely rely on Reese to shut those scramble attempts down. As dominant as the rookie linebacker has been this season, he's still growing into his ability to diagnose offensive plays early in the down. But when he's deployed as a quarterback spy, that weakness is taken out of the picture. It becomes athlete against athlete, and Reese is going to win that matchup nine times out of ten.
If the Commanders don't have access to passes down the field or explosive scrambles from Daniels, they won't have an obvious route to advance the ball. That would give an admittedly limited Giants offense the cushion it needs to get another win.
Look for Reese to generate even more buzz than he already has after Week 5.
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