EAST RUTHERFORD - Rachaad White is among the NFL's best running backs in pass protection, and the blocking metrics have validated that opinion as fact over the last two years and counting.
That's what made New York Giants rookie linebacker Arvell Reese's posterization of White in videos that went viral on social media since Sunday's 27-27 tie with the Washington Commanders even more impressive.
"It's about making the play, it's about earning the respect of anyone trying to block me," Reese told NorthJersey.com and The Record at his locker following Thursday's practice. "Dap it up, salute each other, respect, and in our last game, White and me, we were laughing in between plays. I think I tried to say something funny to him, he was like, 'You gotta go full speed every play? Come on, man,' and we laughed about maybe me slowing down the next time."
If there's anything to gain from the first five games of Reese's professional career, he's not slowing down for anyone.
Even the grandest of plans the Giants harbored for the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, the first of the John Harbaugh era, did not include the best non-quarterback on their board.
The Giants saw Reese as a unique defensive weapon, the best off-ball linebacker in the Class of 2026 with the ideal blend of power and speed. They also loved his potential as a pass rusher, but he was their selection not as a projection, but because of the playmaker he already was.
At 21 years old, Reese is just scratching the surface of what he can be. He is considered to have the highest ceiling of any player in the Class of 2026, and there is no question Harbaugh sees him as embodying similar qualities that made many of his defenders during his tenure in Baltimore great.
"Speed and violence," sad Reese, who is tied for first in the NFL with 30 solo tackles and his 43 combined tackles are ninth in the league. He has a sack and an interception, making an impact in every facet of the game.
“He’s Arvell Reese – and we’re just going to let him be Arvell Reese,” Giants linebackers coach Frank Bush said. “I’ve said he’s a Ferrari. Once you learn how to drive with him, he’s faster than most cars out there.”
Going zero to 60 mph in 2.4 seconds between the lines like that Ferrari while packing an old school punch, wrecking anything that gets in the way like a Mack Truck. White found out the hard way, as did the Titans' Tyjae Spears and the Cardinals' Jeremiyah Love.
"Arvell is a nightmare for running backs to block, that's for sure," Giants running back Cam Skattebo said. "When you've got 6-foot-5, 245 pounds running full speed at you, it's a hard thing to get your body and mind right and be ready to stop that."
Lawrence Taylor had some advice for Arvell Reese, the greatest defensive game changer in the history of the New York Giants offering up his blueprint to greatness to the sensational rookie, as simple as that may sound all these years later.
"He's been great, I think he's a good player," Taylor said of Reese. "To tell you the truth, [the game plan] was: 'See ball, get ball' for me."
Taylor is the last Giants player to win the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Right now, the top two candidates reside in the Big Apple: Reese and the Jets' David Bailey, who is coming off a three-sack game against the Browns.
Reese has been as outstanding in coverage and against the run, and equally dynamic when the Giants have used him in pass rush packages, both on the edge and blitzing on the interior from his inside linebacker spot.
That's where the greatest mismatches have occurred with opposing running backs being made to look like Pop Warner players attempting to stop the biggest, fastest and strongest adult on the field.
"Yeah, if you can get Arvell on a running back, it's a good matchup for us any day of the week," Giants defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson said. "He is a violent scud missile. When he goes forward, I say he's like a bull, he's sees red, and it's good for us. If we can dictate and get a running back and get him on a one-on-one, more times than not he's going to win. And the first time that he goes, he's going to make you feel him."
As part of his weekly preparation, Reese takes time to study the tendencies of those he expects to rush against. That includes running backs and tight ends, and when those matchups are 1-on-1, the plan he puts together is fluid.
"What is the approach? Honestly, man, it really all depends on knowing the running back and how he's gonna come at you," Reese said. "You've got some backs who are going to try and cut you. Some backs sit back. Some backs lean too much. You have to study and know how they're going to try and block you. Sometimes I'll look to win with power, and that's just me, building my speed up on a blitz. If I see a back leaning too much, maybe that first time, I'll blitz and try to run through them. That next time, if they're on their toes a little bit, I might try to work a move, maybe dip around. What I do each time depends on how they try to stop me."
The Giants (3-1-1) are alone in first place in the NFC East for the first time since 2015, Tom Coughlin's final season as head coach, and they will look to maintain the advantage in the standings Sunday against the New Orleans Saints (1-4).
Like a true defensive weapon, Reese has been everywhere.
"He's doing everything well right now, and I'm just so excited about his production and where he's going and how he's playing, his communication, his level of play," Wilson said. "Like I said, he's had some rookie moments, but right now he looks like a seasoned vet."
The Giants' own running backs found out early in training camp that Reese was not playing around. And as Tyrone Tracy acknowledged, it's not a surprise his encounters in the backfield with those assigned to prevent Reese from wrecking games have garnered an unusual level of attention.
"Arvell's different," Tracy said. "He is strong, and he plays to his strength. You can watch him on tape, and you can prepare for what you think you're gonna get, you can prepare all you want, but until you actually try to block him, you won't know. You meet him on the pickup and be like, 'Quarterback, you got to throw that ball man. Get rid of that pill.' Because Arvell's running through whatever is in the way and he ain't stopping for you."
Opposing running backs are finding that out the hard way when Arvell Reese sees red and is charging straight at them.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Why Giants' Arvell Reese is a running back's worst nightmare | Exclusive