FRISCO, Texas — Caleb Downs makes his NFL debut Sunday night against the New York Giants, a team that had two chances to draft him in the first round in April and passed both times.
New York took Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese at No. 5. With the No. 10 pick, acquired days earlier in the trade that sent defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence to the Cincinnati Bengals, the Giants took Miami offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa. The Dallas Cowboys then traded up one spot with the Miami Dolphins, sending No. 12 and two fifth-round picks for No. 11, and took Downs.
Whether the Giants ever called to say he would be their pick at No. 10, Downs has no clue, and he figures that would probably be illegal anyway.
“I’m just trying to win Sunday,” Downs said Thursday. “That’s about it.”
Giants coach John Harbaugh called himself a “big fan” of Downs in a pre-draft radio interview with Mike Francesa, Big Blue View reported. Harbaugh attended Ohio State’s pro day, and speculation had the Giants considering Downs at No. 5.
Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker said the defensive players Dallas wanted depended on what came off the board before its pick.
“I think my main concern was that [they] weren’t going to take an offensive player,” Parker said. “Going into the draft and then once it got going, I was just hoping that as many tackles and receivers were going to fly off the board as possible, which would mean that the defensive players that we desired were going to be available, and certainly that happened. We’ve been very happy with the result.”
Caleb Downs’ Father Gary Downs Was A Giants Draft Pick
Downs’ father, Gary Downs, was a third-round pick of the Giants out of NC State in 1994, 95th overall. He played running back for New York in 1994 and 1996, spent 1995 with the Denver Broncos, and finished his career with the Atlanta Falcons from 1997 to 2000.
The Giants were Gary Downs’ first NFL team, and the family’s ties to the franchise came up during his son’s pre-draft process.
“When he got cut,” Downs explained of his father’s time with the Giants. “No, I’m just playing. He got drafted there. So I talked to the people that drafted him. Some of the people from that family are still there. So I talked to them during the draft process.
“It was cool to talk to them knowing that they drafted my pops and they knew who he was,” Downs continued. “But as I said, I can’t think about any of that right now.”
Downs’ older brother, Josh Downs, is entering his fourth season with the Indianapolis Colts, who drafted him in the third round in 2023, 79th overall. He has 198 catches in three seasons. Dallas plays at Indianapolis on Nov. 8.
The family is coming to MetLife on Sunday night and will likely go to Josh’s game the following week.
“I have to say my mom,” Downs said. “She’s the biggest cheerleader I have, so I just can’t replicate how excited she is to see me play and then watch my brother play earlier in the day and then probably go see him play next week as well.”
Caleb Downs Sees Malik Nabers And Jaxson Dart Again
Downs has faced the two biggest names in the Giants’ offense before. As a freshman at Alabama in 2023, he played against Jaxson Dart and Ole Miss in September and against Malik Nabers and LSU in November. Alabama won both games, 24-10 and 42-28.
Downs said a defense has to know the quarterback can run the ball on the opposite side of the field.
“I think it’s the same as when I played him in college,” Downs said. “You got to know once you turn your back to him, once you turn around, he could be running the ball and you’re going to have to get him on the ground. So I think that’s always a challenge for a defense, is knowing that the quarterback can run on the opposite side of the ball.
“So just caging him in the pocket and doing what we’re supposed to do and executing our jobs,” Downs added.
Nabers tore the ACL and meniscus in his right knee in Week 4 last season and has been a full participant in practice this week. In Week 2 of 2025, he caught nine passes for 167 yards and two touchdowns against Dallas. Downs called Nabers “a great player” and said he is “just excited to go against more great players.”
Reese and Downs were teammates at Ohio State, where they won the national championship after the 2024 season. Downs called Reese his brother and said he talked to him a few minutes before speaking to reporters Thursday, but that it will be “competition on the field.”
Downs is still on college time, by his own admission.
“Confidence level-wise, that’s probably the biggest thing, going against the best every day,” Downs said of practice reps against CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. “It’s a huge positive for me. Going into a game like Saturday, I mean Sunday. I’m still on college time. Going into a game on Sunday, it’s great to know that I’ve been playing against the best in practice.”
The message from Parker this week has been for the defense to do what it does at its highest level.
“Just keep it simple,” Downs said. “That’s the biggest thing for our defense is if we do what we do at our best level, at our highest capacity, then we’re going to be fine. And that’s what our thought process is going into the game.”
Kickoff at MetLife Stadium is 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
