National Football League

2026 NFL Draft: Meet Arvell Reese, the Edge Rusher the Giants Took at No. 5

24 Apr 2026, 01:02 · FOX Sports

Arvell Reese is considered one of the most intriguing prospects in the NFL Draft, valued for his elite versatility as both an off-ball linebacker and pass rusher. He is now set to join the New York Giants, who selected him with the No. 5 overall pick.

Reese, 20, won the Butkus-Fitzgerald Big Ten Linebacker of the Year award and earned consensus All-American honors. He was also a finalist for the national Butkus Award and played a key role in the Buckeyes’ defense, which finished No. 1 in college football in both scoring defense (9.3 points per game) and total defense (219.1 yards per game).

Here’s what else to know about Reese.

Stats

Reese logged 69 total tackles (34 solo), 6.5 sacks and two pass deflections at Ohio State this past season.

What FOX Sports’ draft analysts have said about Reese

FOX Sports lead college football analyst Joel Klatt ranked Reese as his No. 3 overall prospect in his top 50 ranking and didn’t shy away from his ceiling or the high level of potential he brings to the league.

"Reese has an enormous ceiling," Klatt wrote. "He’s just scratching the surface. He had one year as a starter, and it was an outstanding year. He was basically playing two positions a lot of the time because he was an off-ball linebacker, as the lineup would tell you, but then Ohio State used him off the edge as a pass rusher and a blitzer on the interior. He’s got great bend and athleticism. If Styles wasn’t putting together one of the great combines we’ve ever seen, Reese would’ve been the one that was coming up huge."

FOX Sports lead draft analyst Rob Rang ranked Reese second overall in his top 150 prospects ranking and even compared him to one of the NFL’s best defensive stars.

"A blue-chip talent who starred mostly as an off-ball linebacker at Ohio State but possesses the twitch to attack off the edge, Reese is arguably the best prospect in this class," Rang wrote. "In terms of sheer athleticism, versatility and career trajectory, I see an awful lot of similarities between Reese and another former Big Ten star you might have heard of: Micah Parsons."

Team fit

While the Giants didn't necessarily need an edge rusher, New York needed some pass-rushing help to make up for the loss of defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. Giants edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux is also entering the final year of his rookie contract, so it was a position that New York needed to address at some point in the coming years.

Draft Grade

Rang gave the Giants' selection of Reese an A-.

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