Giants receiver Jalin Hyatt warming up before an August 2026 preseason game
Giants receiver Jalin Hyatt warming up before an August 2026 preseason game
The Giants elevated Jalin Hyatt from the practice squad Saturday. It’s a standard elevation, not a permanent move to the active roster, and it doesn’t announce how much he’ll play.
I’d use the opening to give him a small, repeatable receiving job. Another appearance that leaves everyone guessing what the Giants wanted to learn about him would be a pretty thin return on the opportunity.
Hyatt caught 23 passes for 373 yards as a rookie in 2023, with three receptions of at least 40 yards. In 2024 and 2025 combined, he had 13 catches for 97 yards. The downfield production that once gave his career some promise hasn’t turned into a steady receiving workload.
Giants receiver Jalin Hyatt in a November 2025 game, wearing his number from that season
2026 preseason and 2025 regular-season archive; the older No. 13 uniform is not a claim about his current number or role. New York Giants wide receiver Jalin Hyatt (13) celebrates after making a catch in a game against the Green Bay Packers at MetLife Stadium, Nov 16, 2025, East Rutherford, NJ, USA. Credit: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
The Giants need to decide what the audition measures
I’d give Hyatt a limited selection of outside vertical routes and ask whether he can carry out that assignment consistently. That means evaluating the release, timing and ability to make himself available, rather than deciding the entire experiment succeeded only if a long touchdown arrives.
Those routes would be a proposed use of an existing receiver, not a new position or a package the Giants have said they’re installing. The old catches explain the idea. They don’t prove that Hyatt is currently creating separation or that a new quarterback will find him automatically.
Theo Johnson’s confirmed absence changes the available offensive personnel, but a wide receiver doesn’t replace a tight end’s blocking job. The Giants can consider different groupings without pretending Hyatt provides the same functions or assuming another receiver should lose his assignment.
One elevation shouldn’t decide his future
Protection and game conditions may make an immediate downfield test impractical. In that case, keeping the established receiving options in their normal jobs is a reasonable choice. The Giants don’t owe a player targets simply because he’s been elevated.
What I’d avoid is letting emergency depth become the only description of his job for another stretch of the season. Across his next offensive opportunities, give him something specific to repeat, then use those snaps to decide whether a larger assignment is justified. I’d rather learn he can’t handle a defined receiving job than spend another month without giving him a repeatable one.