Are the Giants Looking to Move on From WR Jalin Hyatt?

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen always likes to say that the roster-building process never stops and that he'll pursue any opportunity to upgrade at any position.

So when Schoen and the Giants recently hosted a visit with receiver Gabe Davis, whom Schoen personally scouted when he was the assistant general manager in Buffalo, the move seemed to be the latest in a series of moves that have called into question the future of third-year receiver Jalin Hyatt.

Hyatt, remember, was a player for whom the Giants traded up in the third round of the 2023 draft to acquire, the Giants giving up the 89th overall selection and their fourth-round pick (No. 128), to the Los Angeles Rams for No. 73 overall, which led them to Hyatt.  

During his first training camp, Hyatt dazzled with his speed and ability to take the top off defense despite running a limited route tree at Tennessee. He appeared in all 17 games as a rookie, getting seven starts, and caught 23 out of 40 pass targets for 373 yards.

The following year, Hyatt appeared to hit a brick wall. He lost the competition for WR2 to Darius Slayton, and as a result, Hyatt saw his pass targets, receptions, and yards all take a steep nosedive. 

In 16 games played, Hyatt had three starts (those coming when Slayton was inactive due to a concussion). He was targeted just 19 times, catching eight balls for 62 yards.  And he’s yet to record a receiving touchdown in the NFL.

Fast-forward to the present and the Giants' meeting with Davis. Despite struggling through injuries last year with the Jaguars, Davis has been a fairly productive receiver. He has started 56 of the 74 games he’s played and has 183 receptions out of 341 pass targets for 2,969 yards and 29 touchdowns. 

Davis has also logged a career 50.1% success rate, meaning he’s been successful in picking up at least 40% of the required yardage on first down, 60% on second down, and 100% on third and fourth down.

Davis ultimately left the Giants without a contract, with Schoen telling Kay Adams on the FanDuel Up & Adams podcast that nothing was imminent with Davis. Davis is still reportedly rehabbing from his season-ending knee injury and is believed not to be able to pass a physical just yet.

So what does this all have to do with Hyatt? 

If the Giants were to add Davis, he would likely move ahead of Hyatt on the depth chart as WR4 and give the Giants a more solid outside option to pair up with Slayton.

This would then allow Malik Nabers to get more action in the slot, where, according to Pro Football Focus, he was the best of the Giants' slot options last season.

To his credit, Hyatt has been working to improve his game in the offseason, making the decision about who will be WR4 difficult. 

And perhaps with Russell Wilson under center, Hyatt, if he gets on the field more this year–he only played 346 offensive snaps last season, down from the 557 he played as a rookie–will show Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll that any thoughts of trying to edge him out of the picture would be a colossal mistake. 

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