Can Round 2 pick Colton Hood become a No. 1 CB for the NY Giants?

The New York Giants drafted Colton Hood with pick No. 37 in the second round. John Harbaugh and Joe Schoen said Hood was their number one player heading into Day 2 of the 2026 NFL Draft. Hood is a 21-year-old outside cornerback who played his final season of college football at the University of Tennessee, but spent 2024 in Colorado and 2023 at Auburn.

Hood has adequate size and length with impressive explosiveness and recovery speed. He is a press-man corner with good line-of-scrimmage skills and the requisite physicality and timing to disrupt with his jam. Hood is very controlled as a mover with excellent spatial discernment when closer to the line-of-scrimmage.

Hood has played 1,150 defensive snaps through his college career, with 72 tackles and 27 sTOPS (most in 2025). His 55.1% catch-rate is impressive, and he surrendered only one touchdown at the collegiate level. He knocked ten passes away and had three interceptions, while committing six penalties. Most of his snaps came either at left or right outside cornerback.

Hood can be trusted on the boundary or field. He executed MEG (man everywhere he goes) a lot at Tennessee on the backside of 3×1 sets, but also played boundary to uneven overloaded offensive formations. His controlled movement skills allowed him to swiftly cover ground while maintaining good distance from potential threats in high-low situations; he does well to keep his eyes on the quarterback and leverage his excellent burst and short-area quickness to disrupt at the catch point.

His ball skills and technique when playing through the catch point are sufficient, with the latter being very good. He gets his upfield hand through the hands of receivers and has an attacking mentality. Please enjoy the breakdown below!