Why Giants didn't become big buyers or sellers ahead of trade deadline

The New York Giants managed to disappoint fans who wanted the club to either buy or sell ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline when the Giants did neither. 

Out-of-favor offensive lineman Evan Neal and non-impact wide receiver Jalin Hyatt were among the Giants players who were reportedly available to other teams. For an article published on Wednesday, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler touched upon why those two players were still with the Giants at that time. 

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"The Giants stood pat for a few reasons," Fowler wrote. "They were open to trading guard Neal, a former top-10 pick who's trying to revitalize his career, but did not receive enough interest. Not only are the Giants keeping wide receiver Jalin Hyatt, but my sense is he'll have a bigger role moving forward."

In that same piece, ESPN's Dan Graziano mentioned that the Giants "couldn't generate any interest for [Neal], even though several teams were looking for offensive line help." That's hardly surprising considering Neal spent the season's first nine weeks as a healthy spectator. 

Meanwhile, there initially was some hope that Hyatt would revive his Giants career after No. 1 receiver Malik Nabers went down with a torn ACL and meniscus in Week 4. In total, Hyatt has tallied just three receptions for 17 yards on the campaign. For what it's worth, the Giants reportedly had little interest in moving on from either defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II or pass-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux.

Why Giants didn't add a wide receiver before trade deadline

Throughout October, numerous stories linked the Giants with Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle. Waddle ultimately stayed put, and Fowler shared that the Dolphins wanted a first-round draft pick or a first-rounder and more for Waddle's services. 

"New York evaluated the wide receiver market, but this is a 2-7 team without a third-round pick in 2026," Fowler added. "Making a splash trade at receiver -- even if it would have helped (rookie quarterback) Jaxson Dart in the short term -- probably doesn't help New York over the next one or two seasons."

Dart will have to work with the weapons he had available to him on Tuesday morning when the Giants take on the Chicago Bears (5-3) at Soldier Field this coming Sunday. As of Wednesday morning, ESPN BET had Big Blue as a 3.5-point underdog for that matchup.