Ohio State rookies are set to rule the NFC East after the 2026 NFL Draft
The 2026 NFL Draft fell a little bit differently than many expected it to. The first Buckeye off the board in the draft ended up being Carnell Tate with the 4th overall pick, which set up a run of arguably the three best defenders available in the draft.
Arvell Reese was selected by the New York Giants, Sonny Styles by the Washington Commanders, and Caleb Downs by the Dallas Cowboys. It was awesome to watch, and it got even better for Buckeyes fans when they realized that each one of this era's best Buckeyes is going to be playing each other a lot every season.
The three best defenders in the draft are all now residing in the NFC East.
The only one of the NFC East rivals who didn't get their hands on a former Buckeye was the Philadelphia Eagles.
Funny enough, for each of the teams in the East, the Buckeyes drafted all to solve a similar issue for each team.
Dallas needed more defense to help their electric offense, Washington needed defense to help out their young and budding quarterback Jalen Daniels, and the Giants just needed the best player available to help out their young offense, too.
Two of those three teams have their eyes set on a long playoff run.
The dark cloud over Dak Prescott's career to this point has been a long playoff run. He puts up all the stats in the world in the regular season, but he either doesn't do quite enough to get to the Playoffs, or, when he is there, he stubs his toe.
For Washington, they caught lightning in a bottle in 2024 in a season that ended up in the NFC Championship Game. They actually probably succeeded too quickly and cost themselves a high draft pick last year, but nonetheless, they were back up at the top.
In that NFC Championship game in 2024, they gave up 55 points to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Eagles and realized that they needed to fix their defense.
For New York, they are just trying to inch their way to the Playoffs. It will not be easy, but adding a guy like Arvell Reese is a step in the right direction.
The best of the Buckeyes' rookie class is all headed to the NFC East, and at least 12 different times, Ohio State fans will get to see some of their favorite players take the field against each other.
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