The 2026 NFL Scouting Combine is finishing up on Sunday. What we have seen and heard throughout the week in Indianapolis has already shaken much of what we thought we knew about what the New York Giants might do in the upcoming NFL Draft.
Let’s do our weekly multi-round Giants mock draft. It’s an ‘almost post-Combine’ mock heavily influenced by what we saw and some of what I heard during my time in Indianapolis.
Round 1 (No. 5) — Sonny Styles, LB, Ohio State
You had to know I was going to do this after Styles posted one of the best workouts ever
for an NFL Draft linebacker prospect on Thursday night.
I said after attending Styles’ Combine podium session that Giants coach John Harbaugh was going to fall in love with Styles. The show he put on Thursday night at Lucas Oil Stadium only deepened that belief
Harbaugh coached Hall of Famer Ray Lewis with the Baltimore Ravens. He had Roquan Smith the last four years, watching him be named First-Team All-Pro twice. He had Patrick Queen for four years.
Harbaugh understands the value of an off-ball linebacker, especially one with the versatility to fill a number of roles while playing every down.
Harbaugh on Tuesday called stopping the run “a must thing,” and knows he needs a dominant inside linebacker to help accomplish that.
“The inside linebacker isn’t always considered a value position but you can’t stop the run without an inside linebacker making tackles in the middle. You can’t do it,” Harbaugh said. “That becomes pretty important.”
Positional value purists won’t like it, but I can’t leave Styles on the board.
Other players considered: Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State; Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State; Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU; Francis Muaigoa, OT, Miami; Jerimiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame
Round 2 (No. 37) — Dillon Thieneman, S, Oregon
We have spent the last few weeks debating whether or not Ohio State safety Caleb Downs could be the Giants’ pick at No. 5. I think that is still a possibility, but with the numbers Styles posted, the fact that Downs chose not to work out in Indianapolis, and the athletic testing numbers Thieneman posted it feels like the Downs Train lost some steam this week.
Sports Info Solutions has Thieneman as its No. 22 overall prospect and the second-ranked safety behind Downs. SIS assigns 6.7 “strong starter” grade. SIS says:
Thieneman is a smart, instinctual, and versatile leader on the back end of the defense whose excellence in zone coverage and impact at all 3 levels of the field will help him make a difference early on in his career.
As I have written before, Harbaugh has coached elite safeties Brian Dawkins, Ed Reed, and Kyle Hamilton during his career. He knows their value. A linebacker-safety combo with the first two picks of the draft feels very Harbaugh-esque. It certainly is not something GM Joe Schoen would do, but the Giants are now Harbaugh’s team and if that’s what he wants, that is what he will get.
The biggest issue with this selection is that Thieneman will probably be long gone at No. 37 in the actual 2026 NFL Draft. He is on the board here, though, so I grab him.
Other players considered: Caleb Banks, DT, Florida; Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, S, Toledo; Brandon Cisse, CB, South Carolina; Emmanuel Pregnon, G, Oregon; Chase Bisontis, G, Texas A&M; Zachariah Branch, WR, Georgia
Round 4 (No. 105) — Brenen Thompson, WR, Mississippi State
OK, so I know some of you will think I have lost my marbles here. A 5-foot-8¾, 170-pound slot receiver? What about Wan’Dale Robinson? Honestly, this is a move that the Giants should only consider if they are unable to keep Robinson in free agency. That seems like a strong possibility, with Dan Duggan of The Athletic reporting that “the sense from league sources is the Giants are bracing for the wide receiver’s market to extend beyond their comfort zone.”
Why Thompson? When I was in Indianapolis bouncing from podium to podium I kept hearing cornerbacks mention Thompson’s name when they were asked to name the toughest wide receivers they ever had to cover.
Now, as we have learned with Robinson, a small wide receiver like this has limitations. But, if the Giants find themselves needing to replace Robinson, they could do worse things than giving Thompson a chance.
SIS says:
Speed is the name of Thompson’s game, and he pairs that with high-end short-area quickness and tracking skills, but his small stature and limited route tree could be something that holds him back at the next level.
Thompson has the ability to get into his route incredibly quickly. He shows a good get-off with solid burst and acceleration. However, he needs to play off the line, in the slot, or in motion, because he can struggle against press defenders, especially those with length and physicality. His main form of separation is his speed, but he’s so quick in and out of cuts that he can win by snapping off the top of his routes as well. With that said, he didn’t run much of an NFL route tree in college, especially this past season. Nearly half of his targeted routes were curls in Mississippi State’s heavy RPO offense. Additionally, he ran a fair amount of slants/crossers and verticals. Given his speed and quickness, he was rarely used on screens, but that could be something that he sees more of at the next level. Thompson will have some occasional concentration drops, but despite his size, he has a fairly large catch radius, as he’s able to pluck the ball out of the air and away from his body. One of his best traits is his ability to track the ball down the field. He does a good job of tracking the ball all the way in over his shoulder. With the ball in his size, he showcases his speed and ability to create additional yardage. He shows some elusiveness, but not as much as you’d expect a smaller player, and he won’t run through many tackle attempts.
This is what Thompson did in the 40-yard dash Saturday night:
Other players considered: Keylan Rutledge, G, Georgia Tech; Ja’Kobi Lane, WR, USC; Julian Neal, CB, Arkansas
