Giants seven-round NFL mock draft 4.0: John Harbaugh gets his game-breaking weapon
Sometimes you have to force the issue.By the letter of the law — is there such a thing when it comes to mock drafts? — a simulation is run and the way the picks tumble off the board should be adhered to, or else what good is a computer-generated model, right?Well, we were going to make sure, this time around, we got where we wanted to go, regardless of how the simulation spit out the players at the top of the 2026 NFL Draft.If need be, we were intent on forcing the issue to select Jeremiyah Love at No.
5 overall because there’s been so much chatter about him and if the Giants would actually take a running back so high.In this scenario, it is more of an exercise than it is a prediction.
We simply wanted to see how the remainder of the draft would proceed for the Giants with Love as their top pick.Get texts from Paul Schwartz with all the latest Giants news and insights, exclusive to Sports+ subscribers.
As it turned out, there was no need to manipulate anything.Love was on the board when we clicked on “Start Draft.’’We went back to the Pro Football Network simulator to go through the seven rounds.Here is Mock Draft 4.0:Previous picks: LB Sonny Styles, Ohio State, Styles, StylesIn this simulation, the first four players off the board were QB Fernando Mendoza, Edge David Bailey, Edge Arvell Reese and WT Carnell Tate.
That left the Giants with loads of intriguing options: Styles, S Caleb Downs, OT Francis Mauigoa, Edge Rueben Bain Jr.and CB Mansoor Delane.
Love is not quite the stratospheric prospect that Saquon Barkley was in 2018, but he’s darn close, He had 40 touchdowns the past two years and had 49 plays of 10-plus yards in 2025.He is one of only four running backs weighing 212 pounds or more to run the 40-yard dash in 4.36 in the last 20 years at the combine.
He did not lose a fumble in three years.John Harbaugh wants a run-oriented offensive attack and gets a game-breaker and Day 1 starter.
Cam Skattebo and Tyrone Tracy will be in the mix ...