Dane Brugler 7-round mock draft: Caleb Downs, Jacob Rodriguez to NY Giants

Q: Who is Caleb Downs and why is he projected to be picked by the New York Giants?

Caleb Downs is a safety from Ohio State, projected to be picked by the New York Giants at fifth overall due to his impressive performance and potential impact on the team's defense.

Q: What position does Jacob Rodriguez play and when is he expected to be drafted?

Jacob Rodriguez is a linebacker from Texas Tech, expected to be drafted in the second round as the 37th overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft.

Q: How many rounds are included in Dane Brugler's mock draft for the 2026 NFL Draft?

Dane Brugler's mock draft includes a full seven rounds for the 2026 NFL Draft.

Q: What other players are projected to be drafted by the New York Giants in the 2026 NFL Draft?

In addition to Caleb Downs and Jacob Rodriguez, the Giants are projected to draft Deion Burks, Kaytron Allen, Thaddeus Dixon, Anez Cooper, and Haynes King in the later rounds.

Ohio State safety Caleb Downs attempts to tackle Malachi Toney of Miami. | Getty Images

Mock Draft season is reaching a fever pitch in the run-up to the 2026 NFL Draft. There is just eight (8) days remaining until draft day, and everyone is working to get mock drafts in before everything boils over in Draft Week proper.

Dane Brugler of The Athletic released a full 7-round Mock Draft Wednesday morning. He joins Mel Kiper Jr. in reverting to the collective opinion from the beginning of the Draft Process, and sends Ohio State safety Caleb Downs to the New York Giants at fifth overall.

First round (5th) – Caleb Downs, S, Ohio State [Prospect profile]
Second round (37th) – Jacob Rodriguez, LB, Texas Tech [Prospect profile]
Fourth round (107th) – Deion Burks, WR, Oklahoma
Fifth round (145th) – Kaytron Allen, RB, Penn State [Prospect profile]
Sixth round (186th) – Thaddeus Dixon, CB, UNC
Sixth round (192nd) – Anez Cooper, OG, Miami
Sixth round (193rd) – Haynes King, QB, Georgia

Chris’ thoughts

Brugler only explains the first pick, so I’ll add his thoughts first:

Over John Harbaugh’s 18 years as head coach in Baltimore, the Ravens drafted nine positions in Round 1, including safety (three times). Though using a top-five pick for that position is uncommon, Downs has rare football intelligence and (despite not testing in any drills) is above the line in terms of on-field athleticism.

I’ve been pretty consistent since before he elected to not work out: I’m out on Caleb Downs at No. 5. On the field, I do see a guy who processes quickly in the box, but one who is prone to indecision, vulnerable to manipulation, and late to the party from deep coverage zones.

At 5-foot-11 with 30-inch arms, he has mediocre size to go with average athleticism, all of which shows up on his tape. He has neither the size and versatility of Kyle Hamilton, nor his instincts, so I don’t see using using Hamilton as a reason to draft Downs.

He was able to still win in college, but the game will be faster with tighter margins in the NFL. Downs will probably be a good NFL safety, but the fifth overall pick isn’t where you find “good” safeties.

Stepping back a bit, I’ve also said this before, and every mock draft to come out reinforces it: Nobody knows what the Giants are thinking. Every big-name mock drafter is resorting to inferences about what John Harbaugh has had in the past, and using those guys as short-hand for what they want a player to be for the Giants. Be it Caleb Downs, Sonny Styles, or Francis Mauigoa, very few mocks actually have the Giants taking a player because of who that player is. Rather, connections are being drawn between positions and guys “John Harbaugh always had” at Baltimore.

Skipping over Jacob Rodriguez for a moment, I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the reasoning behind Brugler selecting wide receiver Deion Burks in the fourth: Burks resembles Hollywood Brown as an undersized speed slot receiver from Oklahoma. Or you could say he resembles Darnell Mooney and Calvin Austin III, who are already on the Giants’ roster.

Back to Rodriguez. He’s a player I love for his instincts and nose for the ball. But for all his production, he’s also an undersized linebacker with a concerningly high missed tackle rate. Rodriquez’s ball production made up for it, but his 13.8% missed tackle rate is double the Giants’ third-ranked missed tackle rate of 6.8% last year.

The rest of the draft is just “meh”. Kaytron Allen has solid vision and contact balance, but would be the Giants’ fourth running back behind Cam Skattebo, Tyrone Tracy, and Devin Singletary.

Thaddeus Dixon is long and worth a flier as a developmental cornerback, but also comes with injury red flags after suffering a “significant” but undisclosed injury this year, then a hamstring injury at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine.

Anez Cooper is a big and powerful, but unathletic, guard prospect. He’d fit in the power run schemes that Greg Roman likes to draw up and he’d figure into the competition at right guard. However, he also has long odds to beat out Daniel Faalele, Evan Neal, Josh Ezeudu, Aaron Stinnie, and Lucas Patrick.

Haynes King might be a developmental backup quarterback behind Jaxson Dart, though more for his running ability than his passing.

Overall, I think I would give this draft a “C” at best.