New York Giants receiver Malik Nabers stepped into the role of draft critic recently, offering candid commentary about his team’s decision to select Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese with the fifth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
During a podcast appearance, Nabers expressed his preference for Ohio State safety Caleb Downs instead, describing him as someone he “would rather play with than against.” The two faced each other when Nabers was at LSU and Downs played his freshman season at Alabama in 2023. Downs was ultimately chosen 11th overall by division rival Dallas.
“I love (Reese) the player but just like (podcast co-host Micah Parsons) said, where does he play? You want to be on the outside and rush but we just drafted someone last year to that same position,” Nabers commented.
Giants head coach John Harbaugh responded by personally contacting Nabers to discuss how Reese would fit alongside the team’s existing pass-rushing talent, which includes 2025 first-round selection Abdul Carter and veteran edge rusher Brian Burns.
“One thing that you’ll kind of probably see as we go here, we don’t get too worried about stuff,” Harbaugh explained. “As long as the person’s heart is in the right place, as long as the person really cares … and you really want what’s best for everybody and he’s got a good heart and it’s coming from a good place, say what you think. Put it out there.”
“We talk all the time about confronting everything that has to do with our football team. And so Malik wants to know how we’re going to use our first-round pick. I want to show him. I want to explain it to him. The fact that he says it publicly, who cares? I know fans are probably thinking the same thing.”
The Giants had another opportunity to select Downs with their 10th pick but instead chose Miami offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa.
According to Harbaugh, Nabers visited the team facility on Friday before the draft’s second day, where they had an in-depth discussion about Reese’s role. The first-year Giants coach said Nabers left that meeting “fired up” about the linebacker.
“We had a great conversation with that,” Harbaugh noted. “Like came in the next morning, sat up there and we were talking about it. He made himself clear. It’s like you even said, if you go back and you watch it, I appreciate kind of where he’s coming from. I mean, you’re in a podcast, you’re talking ball and he’s just like, well, how do they got to use the guy? How’s he going to play? … It’s like he said, ‘I was curious about how you’re going to use him.’”
Nabers later took to social media to clarify his intentions and address the reaction to his comments.
“First off, we have to stop overreacting,” Nabers wrote online. “I would never intentionally take away from the biggest moment/night of Arvell’s life. Very excited to see him play on the team and happy that we have another dawg on the squad!!”
