Daniel Jones may finally have weapons. The New York Giants have been seeing great results from some of their young receivers at training camp thus far, most notably Malik Nabers and Jalin Hyatt.
Malik Nabers has been excellent in training camp so far
Nabers, the Giants’ first-round draft selection this year, has been very impressive so far in his first camp action with the team. On Sunday, he made a tremendous catch on the run over his shoulder off of a great throw by Jones, showcasing his elite catching abilities by creating great separation from defensive backs.
SNY’s Connor Hughes gave his thoughts on what he has seen from Nabers so far, and acknowledged that the Giants could finally have themselves a top receiving target for the first time since Odell Beckham Jr.
“The Giants have not had a player on their roster capable of doing what Malik Nabers is in quite some time,” Hughes said. “It has reached a point here in Giants’ training camp where whenever no. 9 is on the field you need to have your eyes on him. He dazzles with his release off the line, how he can separate from the defense in the back end, and when that ball is in the air you love his chances of coming down with it.”
The Giants love Nabers’ confidence
As shown in the HBO series “Hard Knocks” this offseason, the Giants – especially head coach Brian Daboll – were enamored by Nabers’ pre-draft workouts and his winning mentality. Another attribute they love is his confidence, and he demonstrated that when speaking to reporters following the second day of training camp in which he caught another deep ball from Jones.
“Dabes asked me what play I wanted to call, I said ‘left over, a go ball’. Daniel came up to me and was like ‘what you want?’ I said ‘off-press, just throw it up.’ He was like ‘alright, I got you.’ The chemistry showed,” Nabers said (h/t SNY).
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Jalin Hyatt has flashed a lot of potential as well during camp
The Giants have also seen strong performances from another young receiver, second-year player Jalin Hyatt. 2024 is expected to see Hyatt have a lot more opportunities after being limited in his usage throughout his rookie season last year.
Known for his elite speed and ability to make big plays, he showcased both of those during Sunday’s practice, catching a long pass from Jones for a would-be touchdown.
Seeing Hyatt become more involved in the offense could be huge for the Giants, as he flashed the potential of being a great playmaker during parts of last season. Hyatt being able to draw the attention of defenders in the deep secondary can open up more opportunities for the other receivers as well, which could help create a much more fluid offense in 2024.
Giants training camp has shown a lot of things to be encouraged about heading into this season. They still need to play in actual games before any real conclusions can be made, but there is a lot of potential in the team’s young receiving group that could be a key part of their main core going forward.
