After the New York Giants made Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese the fifth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the first thought that came to mind for Giants fans was likely, “another edge rusher?”
It’s a fair question. Over the last four calendar years, New York has used three top-five picks on pass rushers. In 2022, they used the No. 5 pick on Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux. In 2025, they used the No. 3 pick on Penn State’s Abdul Carter.
And that’s not to mention reigning All-Pro Brian Burns, who is the best of the bunch.
There’s been trade speculation surrounding Thibodeaux all offseason, and after the Reese pick, it felt even more likely that the Giants would finally find a deal.
For a little bit there, it felt like the New Orleans Saints were going to strike a deal for the former Oregon standout.
Instead, they went in a different direction.
Saints Opt for Different Trade, Pass on Kayvon Thibodeaux
In the midst of Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport revealed that instead of trading for New York Giants pass rusher Thibodeaux, the New Orleans Saints would instead be trading for former Las Vegas Raiders first-round pick Tyree Wilson.
Rapoport added after the trade news that conversations between the Saints and Giants on a Thibodeaux trade broke down.
“The Saints spoke with the Giants on a potential trade for Kayvon Thibodeaux over the last few weeks, but when NYG held firm on compensation, they moved on to Tyree Wilson, the former first-rounder,” the insider wrote on X.
Clearly, the Giants’ asking price for their first-round edge rusher was too high.
Rumors persisted around the NFL Scouting Combine that New York was seeking a third-round pick for Thibodeaux’s services. All the trade buzz started percolating last night before the start of Day 2 of the NFL Draft.
New Orleans, instead of sending a valuable third-round selection to New York, sent the Raiders a 2026 fifth and seventh-round pick for Wilson.
Wilson isn’t as prolific a pass rusher as Thibodeaux is, but the cost was certainly worth it for what the Saints were looking for.
What Do the Giants Do With Kayvon Thibodeaux?
With the 2026 NFL Draft nearing its end, Thibodeaux remains on the Giants roster. Will the former first-round pick end up getting traded?
Publicly, the Giants have remained staunch in their messaging that Thibodeaux isn’t going anywhere.
“No, nothing’s changed. I wish I could just put anything out in the Twittersphere and just let people run with it, but no, there’s no truth to that,” Joe Schoen told reporters Friday night.
“We have not had any conversations today about Kayvon, so that’s not true.”
So, Schoen denies having any trade conversations regarding Thibodeaux.
But that doesn’t really line up with the timeline of events. Heck, even Thibodeaux himself seemed to think he was getting traded on Friday evening, as evidenced by his cryptic social media posts.
The Giants are likely still holding out for the right trade offer to come, but at this point, it seems like they might be waiting for 2027 draft picks, considering this year’s draft is nearly at an end.
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