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Cover 3: First look at 2026 NFL Draft landscape

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The Giants.com crew members give their first impressions of the draft landscape, including takeaways from last week's college all-star games.

John Schmeelk: After a long eight days in icy Dallas and chilly Mobile at the Shrine Bowl and Senior Bowl, I learned something very simple - the draft class is exactly what I thought it was. Nothing I saw at the two All-Star games changed my overall opinions of the classes because the groups were very reflective of the class in general.

If you are looking for help in your defensive front seven, this is the draft for you. The edge group is loaded with a variety of pass rushers that include a combination of bigger, pocket crushing edges (T.J. Parker, Zion Young, Rueben Bain) and players that will bend the edge with their athleticism (David Bailey, Romello Height). The majority of those players were present at the Senior Bowl and Shrine Bowl.

Need a linebacker? This is the best linebacker class in years. There could be two off-ball linebackers selected in the top ten in Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese, but there is depth beyond those two Ohio State players. At the Senior Bowl, players like Kyle Louis, Bryce Boettcher, and Owen Heinecke stood out in practice, along with Texas Tech's Jacob Rodriguez.

There might not be many surefire No. 1 wide receivers in the class, but there is good depth at the position. Whether you are looking for size (Denzel Boston, Chris Brazzell II, Malachi Fields) or smaller, quicker wide receivers (Makai Lemon, Zachariah Branch, KC Concepcion), there are a number of players that should be able to contribute right away.

If a team is looking for a blue chip player at a premiere position, they might be disappointed in the top ten. But there is always depth in every class, and that is no different in 2026.

NFL Media analyst Daniel Jeremiah released his first ranking of the top 50 prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Dan Salomone: The Ravens' first pick of the John Harbaugh era was Joe Flacco in 2008. Who will it be for the Giants in 2026? Time will tell, but it's safe to say it won't be a quarterback.

"It starts with the quarterback for sure," Harbaugh said two weeks ago at his introductory press conference. "You build your team around your quarterback."

And he really likes the quarterback.

More than Jaxson Dart's physical skills, Harbaugh admires "what he's about" and that's why he can't wait to get started with him. There are many ways to build around a quarterback, the obvious ones being receivers and offensive linemen. But a defensive backbone doesn't hurt, either.

During Harbaugh's tenure from 2008 through 2025, the Ravens allowed the fewest touchdowns, points, rushing first downs, rushing yards, and third-down conversions. They also allowed the second-fewest first downs and total yards. Offensively, Baltimore was No. 1 in that span in rushing yards and yards per carry, No. 3 in rushing touchdowns, and No. 6 in points per game.

In that time, Lamar Jackson (32nd pick in 2018) won two NFL MVP Awards and Joe Flacco (18th pick in 2008) was a Super Bowl MVP. Dart, the 25th overall pick in 2025, will look to follow in their footsteps under Harbaugh, who builds teams with the entire picture in mind.

"He's a born leader," Chris Mara said of his first conversation with Harbaugh. "Sitting next to him, I could just tell. He looks at the whole picture – not one side of the ball, not special teams, not defense. He looks at the whole picture."

So, when the combine comes around at the end of the month, don't view it through the lens of which position the Giants need. Instead, ask if prospects have Harbaugh's No. 1 coveted trait.

"We have to have guys that love football," he said. "You just have to. It's football. What are we here for? What do we do? What is this building for? It's for football. This is a football team. We need guys that love everything about football. They love the games. They love the practices. They love the weightlifting. They love the meetings. They love the dining hall. They love every part of football. If you love football, guys, if you love football, you're going to want to be here. You're going to want to drive in that parking lot every single day. You're going to want to walk through those doors, you're going to want to walk up in those halls, you're going to want to get in front of that tape and watch tape every single day because you're going to be around a bunch of guys that love what you love. They love football, because that's what we're going to be doing, football, all the time, every day."

If they don't, not even the best 40-yard dash can get a player drafted to a Harbaugh team.

View photos of John Harbaugh being introduced as head coach of the New York Football Giants.

Matt Citak: With the fifth overall pick, the Giants once again have an opportunity to add game-changing talent to the roster. We are still in the first week of February, and as we know, a lot is going to change between now and the start of the draft in late April. But with how things stand as of today, it looks like the Giants' needs might line up well with the talent in this year's draft.

The Giants have a handful of starters from this past season set to hit free agency. Wide receiver Wan'Dale Robinson, cornerback Cor'Dale Flott, and right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor are all scheduled to hit the open market next month, along with linebacker Micah McFadden, who missed essentially the entire 2025 campaign after suffering an injury in Week 1. Robinson, Flott and Eluemunor all enjoyed what was likely their best seasons in the NFL, and the departure of any of them would certainly leave a hole that would need to be filled. But when looking at early prospect rankings and mock drafts, it appears as if the Giants could be very well positioned to address those positions with their first two picks in the draft. Wide receivers Carnell Tate, Jordan Tyson and Makai Lemon all seem to be in the discussion for the first wideout taken, and all could be in play for the Giants at No. 5. The same goes for offensive tackles Spencer Fano and Francis Mauigoa, along with cornerback Mansoor Delane. In terms of possibly having to replace McFadden in the middle of the defense, there is Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles, who recently landed at No. 5 in Daniel Jeremiah's initial top 50 prospect rankings.

But it goes beyond the fifth overall pick. At No. 37, the Giants will have an opportunity to add another player that could step in and be a starter on Day 1. If the Giants go O-line or defense with their first pick, there should be several intriguing wide receiver options available at the start of the second round. Jeremiah had 11 wide receivers in his top 50 prospect rankings, highlighting the talent and depth at the position in this year's draft. On top of that, he had seven offensive tackles, five cornerbacks and four linebackers, not to mention five defensive tackles. While free agency might serve as a better time to target positions of need than the draft, it does appear as if some of the Giants' possible needs this offseason could line up well with where they are drafting, and the top players that might be available at picks 5 and 37.

View photos of the Giants' rookie class throughout the 2025 season.

Screenshot 2025-08-01 at 3.36.49 PM

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