Following the 2026 NFL Draft, Giants fans had plenty of reason to be excited. With two picks in the top ten, Big Blue took Arvell Reese to complete its linebacker room and Francis Mauigoa to shore up the offensive line. Add in third-rounder wide receiver Malachi Fields, and there was a lot of promise to start the John Harbaugh Era.
Through five weeks, it's nice to see that Giants fans aren't the only ones noticing how impressive this batch of rookies is.
Sports Illustrated's Justin Melo has Big Blue's rookie class ranked No. 2 in his latest article. Fans can finally breathe a sigh of relief as it looks like General Manager Joe Schoen has a class littered with hits.
Arvell Reese and Francis Mauigoa lead an elite Giants rookie class
The headliner of this class, of course, is Reese. He looks like the Defensive Rookie of the Year winner, plain and simple. In his first five games, he has 30 solo tackles, one sack, and one interception. He is everywhere on the football field, and it is so impressive to watch.
Coming into the league, the question was how he would fare dealing more in coverage and not just going after the quarterback. He had his rookie moments in Week 1 against Dallas, but since then he's looked every bit the part of the player they hoped he would become.
Aside from Reese, the other rookies are doing a great job making a name for themselves, too. Mauigoa has had his ups and downs, but it's been mostly positive for the OL out of Miami. Like Reese, Mauigoa is essentially learning a new position after switching from tackle to guard, and so far he's showing he's capable of doing so.
Giants' non-first-round rookies have been a mixed bag
Then we have Fields. He doesn't have the numbers to blow you away (hard to do with Malik Nabers on the opposite side), but watching him on the field, you can just tell he's a player.
As the Giants' schedule gets tougher, it'll be interesting to see how he fares as teams adjust to Nabers and Fields' role in the offense increases. His growth will be one of the more interesting things to watch for the rest of the season.
Cornerback Colton Hood has been more of a disappointment to start his career, but it was believed he'd be more of a project coming out of college. Hood was also thrown into the fire with the injuries to the secondary, so it's probably best to give the kid a chance to adjust to the NFL level. If he does and Fields shows growth, this core of rookies could be huge for the future of the franchise.
An elite linebacker in Reese, a franchise guard in Mauigoa, finally getting a suitable complement to Nabers in Fields and a solid corner opposite Deonte Banks would have all Giants fans thinking dangerously.
Imagine the state of the young core when they finally get their franchise quarterback back, too.
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