The New York Giants made several surprising cuts over the weekend, including linebacker Ryan Connelly and wide receiver Corey Coleman. While Coleman seemed to be more of a sentimental addition to the team the past few seasons after suffering multiple significant injuries, new head coach Joe Judge elected to move on from him in favor of former Cleveland Brown wide receiver, Damion Ratley.
Ratley, who is formally out of Texas A&M, is 25 years old and stands at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds. With Cleveland last year, he hauled in 12 receptions for 200 yards and one touchdown. According to PFF, Ratley was only one of nine wide receivers to not drop a pass with a minimum of 20 targets. Cutting cutting Corey Coleman was certainly a surprise, given he looked quite good during camp this year.
Damion Ratley recorded a respectable 65 receiving grade last season with Cleveland.
Ratley was one of only nine WRs to not have a drop among receivers with 20+ targets.
— PFF NY Giants (@PFF_Giants) September 6, 2020
But even CJ Board was able to make a roster over the former Brown, which indicates that behind the scenes, things might not have gone as smoothly.
The Giants now have Golden Tate, Darius Slayton, Sterling Shepard, and Board as their primary receivers. Of course, Ratley will enter the fold as a potential number 4/5 option. However, it will take him time to learn the playbook and adapt to their new offensive scheme. Nonetheless, it is also possible they translate him into a potential special-teams gunner, after losing Cody Core to a season-ending injury.
Is Damion Ratley a steal for the New York Giants:
Ratley is a solid downfield threat for the Giants, and at 6-foot-2, he now is tied for the tallest wide receiver on the roster alongside Board. The issue with Damion is he doesn’t have enough of a sample size during live games to warrant overly optimistic opinions. He is young and has potential, and that’s all you can ask for during a rebuild. The Giants felt as though bringing on a healthier option with more upside than Corey Coleman was a better move. It is time for us to really trust Joe Judge and his methods, as they certainly have been unconventional compared to recent years with Pat Schirmer and Ben McAdoo leading the team.