One of the biggest rumors surrounding the New York Giants this offseason is their supposed desire to add a top running back to their already-strong RB room. John Harbaugh is making it clear he wants to employ a ground-and-pound offense, which is why the Giants are rumored to be heavily involved in the Jeremiyah Love sweepstakes.
With the fifth pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, Big Blue's approach will test Harbaugh's resolve. Do you go with the best available player who doesn't fill a need in Love, or do you grab debatably a less-talented blue-chip prospect who stands to fill a bigger need. It'll all come down to his roster-building strategy.
While addressing the media during NFL league meetings, Harbs was asked about potentially drafting Love and what his goal is. And his answer definitely panned the flames of a growing controversy in New York, as after outlining his draft approach, he had plenty of good things to say about him as a player:
"You recognize all that, but the business is football. We are a football business. That's what we do. We're trying to make our fans happy. We want to win games. We want to be successful... And to do that, we want to build the best team we can. You build the best team you can with the best players you can get..."John Harbaugh
Harbaugh told SNY he thinks Love is a "very good player" before hoping that "you could put a couple of very's in there" and "maybe a few more". This isn't damning evidence when everyone who has watched Love play football has said the same thing, but he'll complicate the Giants' decision at No. 5.
Jeremiyah Love is going to complicate the Giants' decision with the fifth pick
The Giants tried (and failed) to add a running back in free agency, which is where most of this is coming from. What's the point of paying someone like Kenneth Walker or Travis Etienne when you can bring in an arguably more talented player with fresher legs in Love to town on a rookie contract, and these comments will certainly have the rumor mill churning.
The G-Men already had Love in the building on a 30 visit, and they're clearly off to a good start on doing their homework on him. The reigning Doak Walker Award winner ran for 1,372 yards and 18 scores and was a Heisman finalist in 2025, so if any RB deserves to be drafted top five, it's him.
Not everyone will support taking a luxury position like RB in the draft this high, especially when the Giants have so many holes to fill, but a talent like Love will always be tempting. It'll also trigger some 2018 flashbacks to Saquon Barkley, but I actually prefer Love as a prospect to Saquon.
During his time in Baltimore, the 63-year-old was always someone who drafted the best talent available regardless of position, so even though the Giants have Cam Skattebo, Devin Singletary, and Tyrone Tracy Jr., that won't stop him from taking the guy who will give them the best chance to win games in 2026.
New York will still be looking at defenders like Mansoor Delane, Sonny Styles Jr., and Caleb Downs, and also guys like Carnell Tate and Francis Mauigoa, but if the Super Bowl-winning head coach is willing to get bold to win games, Love could very easily be the pick if this praise is any indication.