Heading into Thursday night's first round of the 2026 NFL draft, one thing was for certain: The New York Giants weren't going home without Ohio State all-world safety Caleb Downs. Until they did.Much to the shock of their fans, players, and many a pundit, Big Blue passed not once, but twice on Downs in favor of other players at pick Nos. 5 and 10.At No. 5, the Giants selected Downs' Ohio State teammate, linebacker Arvell Reese, who fell to them unexpectedly. At No. 10, Giants general manager Joe Schoen and head coach John Harbaugh could not pass up Miami offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa, a classic tough guy, to help solve their interior O-Line issues.In the end, the Giants landed two 20-year-old studs but had to watch as Downs and another OSU defensive star, linebacker Sonny Styles, ended up in the hands of Dallas and Washington, respectively.
"No. No. We hoped," Schoen said after the Giants drafted Reese on Thursday night. "But there weren't a lot of scenarios that we went through where he may be available.""Arvell is a versatile player, and we're going to play him at inside backer, Will linebacker," added Harbaugh.
"Our defense is pretty flexible, position-less, you might call it. We'll have an opportunity to move those guys around. But he'll line up next to Tremaine (Edmunds), and he'll be in the A gap, the B gap, the C gap, the D gap, off the edge.
He'll be moving around with all of our guys."He was our highest-rated non-quarterback player in the draft. He's an exciting player. We are fired up to have him."That answered the question of why they passed on Downs at No. 5.
What happened five picks later, though?"We stuck with the board," said Schoen, who said the Giants landed two of their top four-rated non-quarterbacks in this draft. "And Sisi's another 20-year-old, believe it or not, he'll be 21 in June, so we got two young players that we're fired up about. But a powerful young man with tremendous athleticism and size."And I don't know if you guys saw his interview there on TV.
They asked him what he should tell Jaxson. And that was, that's the type of kid he is. So again, to get those two young men that have size and athleticism and the makeup that we desire, and the fact that we know that we're going to have those guys under contract for five years, to add to some of the young foundational pieces that we already have, I mean, it's really exciting, really exciting."For those who missed Mauigoa's message to Dart, here it is..."I'm ready to die for you."Francis Mauigoa's message to Jaxson Dart 💙 @Giantspic.twitter.com/nK3xf4e2hH— ACC Network (@accnetwork) April 24, 2026"That should be everybody's mentality," Sisi went on to say.
"As an offensive lineman, we should be able to put everything on the line because the quarterback is the key of the offense. So, to be able to block for a quarterback and to be able to make plays and open up holes for the running back, that's what we're supposed to do. It's not something that people want us to -- It’s something that we're expected to do, that's what we need to do."Now you know why Downs in Dallas. This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: New York Giants explain why they passed on Caleb Downs twice