One 40-yard dash just made the Giants’ biggest offseason decision a lot harder.
Arkansas running back Mike Washington Jr. ran a 4.33 at the NFL Scouting Combine — the fastest among all running backs — and the number that keeps reverberating through New York’s draft room isn’t his speed. It’s his weight: 223 pounds.
Washington didn’t run a 4.33 like a small slot receiver. He ran it like a battering ram. That combination produced a Speed Score of 126.9, the second-best ever recorded since the combine adopted electronic timing in 1999. Suddenly the Giants’ plan at No. 5 overall has a new variable, not because Washington is a top-five pick, but because he might not need to be.
Washington Is Built Different
Washington is a transfer nomad who bounced from Buffalo to New Mexico State to Arkansas and got better every time he moved.
In his lone Razorback season he rushed for 1,070 yards and eight touchdowns, caught passes out of the backfield with soft hands, and held his ground as a pass protector against SEC linebackers. At the combine he added a 39-inch vertical and a 10-foot-8 broad jump, second-best among all running backs.
At his Pro Day he ran a 6.91 three-cone and 4.32 short shuttle while the New Orleans Saints watched from the sideline. NFL Network’s Charles Davis compared him to Chargers back Omarion Hampton.
Most draft experts have him projected for the third or fourth round, but his stock is rising. The Giants could be looking at a potential steal and the perfect complement to Cam Skattebo.
The concerns haven’t disappeared, though. Washington doesn’t always run behind his pads the way a 223-pound back should. His anticipation at the second level leaves plays on the field. And his ball security — 10 fumbles on 587 career carries — is the kind of number that will follow him into every pre-draft meeting. The combine didn’t erase those questions. It just made teams willing to bet on the answers.
The No. 5 Pick Just Got More Complicated
John Harbaugh didn’t come to New York to run a one-dimensional backfield. He came to build a run-first offense, a physical, identity-driven attack built on the same blueprint that defined his tenure in Baltimore. That means a complete stable: a bruising downhill back and a speed threat who can take any carry to the house.
Cam Skattebo is the thunder. What the Giants are missing is the lightning. Washington has the size, speed, and big play ability to bring exactly that and he could be had on Day 2.
That distinction matters enormously when you consider what’s sitting at No. 5. New York has reportedly been targeting Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, who is considered by some evaluators to be the best player in this entire class. Love already made an official 30 visit to New York.
Harbaugh has made his philosophy explicit: “When you draft that high, you take the best player. It’s not a need pick. You’re talking about a guy that you would like to see someday wearing a gold jacket if possible.”
If Washington checks the same box on Day 2, the Giants no longer have to justify spending a top-five pick at running back. They can take a generational defender like Ohio State’s Arvell Reese or safety Caleb Downs, or the offensive lineman who protects Jaxson Dart for the next ten years.
The position of need disappears from the board, and Harbaugh gets to do exactly what he said: take the best player available.
The Bottom Line
After a 4-13 season, the Giants arrive at the 2026 draft holding the No. 5 pick and seven total selections. Every piece of pre-draft intelligence between now and April 23 in Pittsburgh reshapes how those picks get used.
Washington won’t hear his name called with the No. 5 pick. But a back with Washington’s size and speed profile, available on Day 2, quietly gives New York the freedom to make a different, bolder swing at the top of the board
Sometimes the most important prospect on the board isn’t the one you’re picking. It’s the player that shapes your strategy.
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