Finally, we are two weeks from the 2026 NFL draft.

As things stand, Ohio State edge defender Arvell Reese feels like the runaway favorite to be the Jets’ selection with the second overall pick. The 20-year-old dominated as an off-ball linebacker and flashed tantalizing upside as a pass rusher.

As a linebacker-turned-edge, the only comparable first-round prospect in recent years is former Penn State star Micah Parsons. Given that Parsons is one of the best players in the NFL, the Jets shouldn’t hesitate to draft his second coming—if that’s who Reese truly is.

But are the Parsons-Reese comparisons justified? Let’s attempt to answer that question by diving into their college usage, production in their last season, and their physical profiles.

Usage

Parsons’ lack of experience as a pass rusher is one of the main reasons Reese is compared to him. Like Reese, Parsons did not get many pass-rush chances in college, but was projected to become a full-time edge rusher in the NFL due to the upside he showed.

In terms of total opportunities in college, the two players are nearly identical. Parsons only logged 135 career pass rush snaps in college, while Reese is barely ahead with 138. In comparison, David Bailey had 849, and Rueben Bain Jr. had 991.

Reese does have an experience advantage over Parsons in terms of where they lined up, however. Reese lined up 333 times on the edge and 566 times in the box. Meanwhile, Parsons only had 82 snaps on the edge compared to 1,007 snaps in the box.

Production

So, we know that Reese and Parsons received essentially the same total of pass-rush chances, while Reese played significantly more snaps off the edge. But how does their production compare?

We’ll only be looking at their final seasons for this one. Micah Parsons sat out in 2020 due to COVID, so we’ll be using his 2019 season.

Micah Parsons (Left) vs Arvell Reese (right):

  • Games Played: 13 vs. 14
  • Total Snaps: 731 vs. 651
  • Pass-Rush Snaps: 94 vs. 119
  • Tackles: 109 vs. 69
  • Defensive Stops: 50 vs. 34
  • Defensive Stop Rate: 6.8% vs. 5.2%
  • Pressures: 26 vs. 27
  • Pressure Rate: 27.7% vs. 22.7%
  • Sacks: 5.0 vs. 6.5
  • Tackles For Loss: 14.0 vs. 10.0
  • Yards Allowed Per Coverage Snap: 1.05 vs. 0.90
  • PFF Overall Grade: 91.6 vs. 75.8
  • PFF Run Defense Grade: 94.8 vs. 86.5
  • PFF Pass Rush Grade: 86.8 vs. 72.3
  • PFF Coverage Grade: 68.5 vs. 54.7

Parsons led in the majority of metrics, while Reese took the edge in total sacks and yards allowed per coverage snap. However, there are two critical factors to consider.

Most importantly, Reese and Parsons played at different alignments. Parsons had the luxury of playing more off-ball snaps, allowing him to be around the ball more often. Meanwhile, Reese was setting the edge at outside linebacker.

Reese also played next to Sonny Styles and in front of Caleb Downs, two likely top 10 picks in their own right. With a bevy of talented players, Reese had competition from his teammates to make the tackle.

The biggest concern is Reese’s PFF grades. As Jets X-Factor’s Michael Nania broke down earlier this year, they are some of the best predictors of NFL success for first-round edge prospects. It’s in this area that Reese is well behind Parsons and other draft prospects. Critically, Parsons had an elite 86.8 PFF pass-rush grade compared to Reese’s 72.1.

Among 400 qualified FBS edge defenders in 2025, Reese ranked in the 78th percentile in PFF’s overall grade and in the 67th percentile in PFF’s pass-rush grade. Even though Reese grades better when compared to linebackers, he still fails to match Parsons’ level of dominance.

This is what makes Reese’s NFL projection different than Parsons’ projection coming out of Penn State. Parsons was the more dominant college player.

Next, how do their physical profiles compare?

Measurables

In the transition from linebacker to edge, size matters. On the edge, Reese will need to engage offensive linemen on every snap and set the edge, far more physical tasks than off-ball responsibilities. As such, size and length are critical factors.

Reese and Parsons profile similarly in this area.

Micah Parsons (Left) vs Arvell Reese (right):

  • Height: 6’ 3⅛” vs. 6’ 4⅛”
  • Weight: 246 vs. 241
  • Arm Length: 31½” vs. 32½”
  • Wingspan: 78⅞” vs. 79½”
  • 40 Yard Dash: 4.36s vs. 4.46s
  • 10 Yard Split: 1.59s vs. 1.58s

While Parsons was a bit heavier, Reese is taller and longer. At only 20 years old, Reese will naturally bulk up, and he clears the popular 32-inch arm threshold, which has sent Rueben Bain Jr. tumbling down draft boards.

Still, Reese’s 32½-inch arms rank in just the 16th percentile among edge defenders, but Parsons’ arms are a full inch shorter, and it hasn’t slowed him down.

So what does this all mean?

While Micah Parsons outplayed Arvell Reese in college, Reese has the tools to succeed in the NFL at EDGE

From the production comparison, it’s clear that Micah Parsons was the better college player. He was far more productive than Arvell Reese in terms of pressure rate, tackles for loss, and total stops, while he also graded out much more impressively.

Despite this, there are reasons to believe Reese may have a similarly successful transition.

Reese had 276 more college snaps on the edge than Parsons, while he boasts superior length. On top of that, he was playing in a pro-style defense under former NFL defensive coordinator Matt Patricia.

The biggest caveat for Reese is that there’s only been one Micah Parsons. In the last 10 drafts, these are the other first-round outside linebackers with less than 150 pass-rush snaps in their final season:

  • 2025 LB Jihaad Campbell: 99
  • 2021 LB Zaven Collins: 51
  • 2021 LB Micah Parsons: 94
  • 2020 LB Isaiah Simmons: 73
  • 2020 LB Kenneth Murray Jr: 86
  • 2020 LB Jordyn Brooks: 118

Beyond Parsons, it’s not an encouraging group of players. Collins is the only other player to transfer to edge, and the results have been disappointing, with 12 sacks in five years. The rest have remained as off-ball linebackers.

Jalon Walker (383 pass-rush snaps) and Leonard Floyd (378) are two examples of successful first-round picks who became quality NFL edge defenders after playing limited pass-rush snaps in college. However, as small as their sample sizes were compared to typical first-round edge prospects, they still had over triple as many chances as Reese.

Only time will tell if Arvell Reese is the next Micah Parsons or the next prospect with sky-high potential who failed to reach their projected ceiling in the NFL.