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WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. - The driving rain was pelting the practice fields here Monday and the New York Giants were in the midst of their first fully padded run game drill of training camp.
Jermaine Eluemunor climbed to the second level from his right tackle spot, meeting rookie inside linebacker Arvell Reese as running back Cam Skattebo sought a crease. What transpired was a loud introduction, just not the way Eluemunor anticipated from his 20-year-old teammate who has managed to command the attention of all those watching the Giants practice at The Greenbrier Resort over the past week.
"Likes to hit," Eluemunor said of Reese, later adding with a laugh and a tinge of sarcasm: "We smacked each other - and I got tripped, just in case there's a video."
Turning the volatile nature of his game into power with knockback will quickly become Reese's calling card, a football superpower reminiscent of a former era. If the No. 5 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft out of Ohio State can do that, and if the Giants can win some games in John Harbaugh's first season, expect Reese to be right there in the hunt for what has been an elusive award in team history.
The Giants have not had the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year since Lawrence Taylor in 1981.
Abdul Carter was the favorite for last year's award going into the season, but ultimately Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger earned the honors. So where does Reese, the second defensive player selected in April's draft behind the Jets' David Bailey, stand as the oddsmakers stack up this year's contenders?
Bailey and the Buccaneers' Rueben Bain are currently at the top of the list with Reese running as a consensus third choice with Ohio State teammates Caleb Downs (Cowboys) and Sonny Styles (Commanders) and Chiefs rookie Mansoor Delane right behind.
"I think he's going to be a pretty dang good player," Eluemunor said. "I'm glad he's on our team, I'll tell you that. He's quick, he's physical. You can tell that he truly loves this game and his instincts are just ridiculous."
The Giants saw Reese as the best off-ball linebacker in the Class of 2026, the perfect blend of power and speed with a vision of eventually turning him into a defensive weapon that can alter the game in different areas. They also love his potential as a pass rusher, like the rest of the league, but he's here because of who he is now.
What Reese can become is a bonus.
Reese is just scratching the surface of what he can be. He has the highest ceiling of any player in this class, and there is no question Harbaugh sees him as embodying similar qualities that made many of his defenders during his tenure in Baltimore great.
"Speed and violence," Reese said when the Giants introduced him the day after the draft. "[Being Harbaugh's first Giants pick], I think that says a lot about me. I think I’m ready for the challenge.”
As for which of those qualities past Harbaugh defenses were known for, Reese said: “I think both are very important. But just playing defense, you’ve got to be violent."
During pre-draft evaluations, the 6-foot-4, 243-pound Reese drew comparisons to Packers star edge rusher Micah Parsons, who began his pro career in Dallas as an off-ball linebacker. One year after Carter dealt with the Parsons comps, especially given their Penn State connection, Reese heard them, too - although he quickly shed them like a potential blocker.
"They’re just comparisons,” he said. “I can’t control that.”
Reese's best fit in the NFL from jump is exactly where the Giants are planning to play him: next to Tremaine Edmunds and in the middle of the defense. He can attack gaps from the weak side, turned loose to chase plays sideline to sideline by using his 4.46 speed.
Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia put him in a position to read and react, then see it and go, and Reese gave nightmares to the opposition. His uncommon wingspan - and that of the 6-foot-4, 251-pound Edmunds - will provide opposing quarterbacks pause when looking to exploit the middle of the field in the passing game.
That's how the Giants will use him, too.
"I can't wait to see the tape, but he's playing really well," Harbaugh said of Reese, who along with Carter gives the Giants a pair of franchise cornerstone freaks on defense under the age of 22. "He's been playing well the whole camp since he got here. You see the talent, obviously. I think he's very sharp for a first-year guy. He gets things right pretty much all the time, makes very few mistakes. He's a very serious-minded guy, and he's very determined."
Call him The Eraser - well, the E-Reeser - with the way his skill and athleticism can correct mistakes. He made the play of the day in Friday's practice during team drills when Jaxson Dart had read the coverage perfectly. The Giants' defense was in zone and Odell Beckham Jr. found an opening and sat down, waiting for the throw. Dart saw him and fired for what would have been a 15-yard completion, but Reese used his length to come out of nowhere and deflect the pass away from OBJ.
"No. 52 [is] that boy!" running back Tyrone Tracy said. "He's big, strong, physical. He's a great football player. Arvell is, 'See ball, get ball.' I think that's the best way to describe him: 'See ball, get ball.' He's gonna run fast, he's gonna hit hard and he's gonna be around the ball at all times."
On Monday, Reese made four run stops and recorded a sack when he lined up against All-Pro left tackle Andrew Thomas and dipped around the Giants' star to get to the quarterback.
In five camp practices, he's been the most explosive player on the field and the most consistent.
"Kid has a real chance to be special," nose guard D.J. Reader said of Reese. "You don't really get a chance to see kids that size move around like how he does at every different position, really run around and be smart. He stays quiet and really tries to learn. He's got a real chance to be really, really good."
Arvell Reese is wasting little time in showing why.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Why this top-flight rookie gives Giants reason to dream big on defense
Continue reading...
Jermaine Eluemunor climbed to the second level from his right tackle spot, meeting rookie inside linebacker Arvell Reese as running back Cam Skattebo sought a crease. What transpired was a loud introduction, just not the way Eluemunor anticipated from his 20-year-old teammate who has managed to command the attention of all those watching the Giants practice at The Greenbrier Resort over the past week.
"Likes to hit," Eluemunor said of Reese, later adding with a laugh and a tinge of sarcasm: "We smacked each other - and I got tripped, just in case there's a video."
Turning the volatile nature of his game into power with knockback will quickly become Reese's calling card, a football superpower reminiscent of a former era. If the No. 5 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft out of Ohio State can do that, and if the Giants can win some games in John Harbaugh's first season, expect Reese to be right there in the hunt for what has been an elusive award in team history.
The Giants have not had the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year since Lawrence Taylor in 1981.
Abdul Carter was the favorite for last year's award going into the season, but ultimately Browns linebacker Carson Schwesinger earned the honors. So where does Reese, the second defensive player selected in April's draft behind the Jets' David Bailey, stand as the oddsmakers stack up this year's contenders?
Bailey and the Buccaneers' Rueben Bain are currently at the top of the list with Reese running as a consensus third choice with Ohio State teammates Caleb Downs (Cowboys) and Sonny Styles (Commanders) and Chiefs rookie Mansoor Delane right behind.
"I think he's going to be a pretty dang good player," Eluemunor said. "I'm glad he's on our team, I'll tell you that. He's quick, he's physical. You can tell that he truly loves this game and his instincts are just ridiculous."
The Giants saw Reese as the best off-ball linebacker in the Class of 2026, the perfect blend of power and speed with a vision of eventually turning him into a defensive weapon that can alter the game in different areas. They also love his potential as a pass rusher, like the rest of the league, but he's here because of who he is now.
What Reese can become is a bonus.
Reese is just scratching the surface of what he can be. He has the highest ceiling of any player in this class, and there is no question Harbaugh sees him as embodying similar qualities that made many of his defenders during his tenure in Baltimore great.
"Speed and violence," Reese said when the Giants introduced him the day after the draft. "[Being Harbaugh's first Giants pick], I think that says a lot about me. I think I’m ready for the challenge.”
As for which of those qualities past Harbaugh defenses were known for, Reese said: “I think both are very important. But just playing defense, you’ve got to be violent."
During pre-draft evaluations, the 6-foot-4, 243-pound Reese drew comparisons to Packers star edge rusher Micah Parsons, who began his pro career in Dallas as an off-ball linebacker. One year after Carter dealt with the Parsons comps, especially given their Penn State connection, Reese heard them, too - although he quickly shed them like a potential blocker.
"They’re just comparisons,” he said. “I can’t control that.”
Reese's best fit in the NFL from jump is exactly where the Giants are planning to play him: next to Tremaine Edmunds and in the middle of the defense. He can attack gaps from the weak side, turned loose to chase plays sideline to sideline by using his 4.46 speed.
Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia put him in a position to read and react, then see it and go, and Reese gave nightmares to the opposition. His uncommon wingspan - and that of the 6-foot-4, 251-pound Edmunds - will provide opposing quarterbacks pause when looking to exploit the middle of the field in the passing game.
That's how the Giants will use him, too.
"I can't wait to see the tape, but he's playing really well," Harbaugh said of Reese, who along with Carter gives the Giants a pair of franchise cornerstone freaks on defense under the age of 22. "He's been playing well the whole camp since he got here. You see the talent, obviously. I think he's very sharp for a first-year guy. He gets things right pretty much all the time, makes very few mistakes. He's a very serious-minded guy, and he's very determined."
Call him The Eraser - well, the E-Reeser - with the way his skill and athleticism can correct mistakes. He made the play of the day in Friday's practice during team drills when Jaxson Dart had read the coverage perfectly. The Giants' defense was in zone and Odell Beckham Jr. found an opening and sat down, waiting for the throw. Dart saw him and fired for what would have been a 15-yard completion, but Reese used his length to come out of nowhere and deflect the pass away from OBJ.
"No. 52 [is] that boy!" running back Tyrone Tracy said. "He's big, strong, physical. He's a great football player. Arvell is, 'See ball, get ball.' I think that's the best way to describe him: 'See ball, get ball.' He's gonna run fast, he's gonna hit hard and he's gonna be around the ball at all times."
On Monday, Reese made four run stops and recorded a sack when he lined up against All-Pro left tackle Andrew Thomas and dipped around the Giants' star to get to the quarterback.
In five camp practices, he's been the most explosive player on the field and the most consistent.
"Kid has a real chance to be special," nose guard D.J. Reader said of Reese. "You don't really get a chance to see kids that size move around like how he does at every different position, really run around and be smart. He stays quiet and really tries to learn. He's got a real chance to be really, really good."
Arvell Reese is wasting little time in showing why.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Why this top-flight rookie gives Giants reason to dream big on defense
Continue reading...
