The New York Giants hold the fifth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, and the debate over what they should do is heating up. On the latest episode of Fireside Giants, Anthony Rivardo and Alex Wilson tackled one of the most exciting scenarios: What if the Giants have to choose between Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love?
It’s a classic draft conundrum. On one hand, you have arguably the most dynamic offensive weapon in the class. On the other, you have an elite defensive talent. Both play what modern NFL front offices consider “devalued” positions, making the positional value argument a wash.
So, what should the Giants do: give their young quarterback an elite weapon, or find the defensive anchor they’ve lacked for a decade?
The Case for Jeremiyah Love: A True X-Factor
When discussing Jeremiyah Love, you have to throw the traditional “running back” label out the window.
“If you’re going to ignore positional value, you can make a strong argument that Jeremiyah Love should be your pick at five… because one of those two guys gives Jaxson Dart an enormous amount of support,” Alex noted.
Anthony expanded on this by comparing Love to Detroit’s offensive philosophy with Jahmyr Gibbs.
“You don’t look at him as just a running back,” Anthony explained. “He is just a weapon. He lines up in the slot, he takes screens out of the backfield, and he does a lot in that offense. That’s the intention behind Jeremiyah Love if you take him at five. You are not looking at him as just a running back… you are adding him to this offense to be an elite weapon.”
Alex’s player comparison for Love paints a terrifying picture for opposing defenses: “If you mashed Saquon Barkley and Jahmyr Gibbs into one player. He’s not as bulky as Saquon, but he’s equally as agile and powerful… you get the power, you get the precision, you get the agility, and you get the speed all wrapped up into one with a shiny bow on it.”
Pairing that skill set with Jaxson Dart and Malik Nabers? According to Anthony, it “sounds like the best trio… in the NFC from day one.”
The Case for Sonny Styles: The Defensive Quarterback
If the Giants opt to address the defense, Sonny Styles offers a profile that is incredibly rare. At 6’5″, he has the size of an enforcer but the movement skills of a defensive back.
“This guy is a linebacker, he is built like a linebacker, but he does not move like a linebacker; he moves like the safety that he used to be,” Anthony said. He pointed out that Styles wants to play a “Kyle Hamilton role” in the NFL—a terrifying prospect for opposing coordinators. “Sonny Styles, a 6’5″ linebacker who moves around like a safety… he actually could probably play that Kyle Hamilton-esque role arguably more in line than Caleb Downs could.”
The Giants’ defense has been missing exactly this type of player.
“This defense has lacked a true star linebacker for a decade,” Alex pointed out. “We had the Blake Martinezes, and they tried with Alec Ogletree, they tried with Bobby Okereke… but none of them have been truly elite. None of them have been one of those ‘this guy is gonna come up in a big moment for us and change the course of a game’ players. That’s the thing the Giants really lack the most.”
At the NFL Combine, Styles proved he is a different breed of athlete. The “jumping, the speed, the strength, the bend—he’s everywhere,” Alex noted. Styles brings the capability to flip the momentum of a game entirely on his own.
Overcoming the Saquon Barkley PTSD
It is impossible to discuss the Giants drafting a running back in the top five without bringing up the ghost of the 2018 NFL Draft, when New York selected Saquon Barkley second overall. But as Anthony rightly pointed out, the context in 2026 is vastly different.
“The Giants in 2018 arguably did need to draft a quarterback… looking back on it, Josh Allen would have been the right pick,” Anthony explained. “But the Giants have Jaxson Dart right now. The Giants have a quarterback. Now it’s about building around the quarterback; it’s not about planning for the future and getting a quarterback on your roster.”
Furthermore, picking at number five in a draft where they don’t need a signal-caller changes the math entirely. The Giants are strictly in the business of surrounding Dart with talent, unlike in 2018 when they passed on a massive trade-back haul from teams looking to move up for Sam Darnold.
Where They Both Land
In the end, both hosts agreed that head coach John Harbaugh’s stated goal of pure “talent collection” makes either player a home run pick.
“You draft Jeremiyah Love or you draft Sonny Styles, I’m happy,” Alex concluded, acknowledging that trading back for a player like Mansoor Delane or adding Carnell Tate would also be fantastic outcomes. “One cannot be upset about adding talent to this roster—good talent, and potentially elite, potentially gold jacket level talent.”
For Anthony, the debate is too close to call. “I’m happy with either one of them. I think they would both be awesome additions.”
Whether it’s an unstoppable offensive weapon for Jaxson Dart or a game-wrecking defensive anchor, taking the best player available at number five might just be the exact injection of elite talent the Giants need to contend.
More about:New York Giants
