The New York Giants will likely be active at the trade deadline this season, but where they might be trying to bring players in the past, they have a few pieces they can let go for capital in the future.
Both Evan Engram and Jabrill Peppers are in the fifth year of the rookie contracts, representing an opportunity for the Giants to move on and acquire draft capital for their services. Engram is an athletic tight end with unparalleled speed at the position, but he has trouble holding onto the football and allowing turnovers. Over the past four seasons, Engram has dropped 25 passes, including a drop and fumble over two weeks this season.
Peppers, on the other hand, has seen his snap count decrease this year as the Giants deploy Xavier McKinney more frequently in the free safety role. Peppers has had trouble in coverage against tight ends, a spot where they desperately needed him to improve.
The New York Giants have a deep WR core:
However, the emergence of receiver Kadarius Toney has made one pass-catcher expendable, and that is third-year player Darius Slayton.
With Sterling Shepard still under contract and Toney beginning to take the reins on offense, Slayton has found himself in a peculiar situation. Fellow speedster John Ross has returned from injury and looked fantastic against the New Orleans Saints last weekend, so Slayton will already be battling for snaps moving forward.
Over three games this year, he has caught seven passes for 127 yards and a score, catching 50% of his targets. Slayton, though, has already dropped three passes this year over just 14 targets, representing a 30% drop rate.
Given his struggles, the Giants might float the idea of treating him and potentially getting back draft capital since he’s outperformed his fifth-round selection back in 2019.
With Ross providing more refined route running and gadget utilities, Slayton’s snap count will likely decrease over the next few weeks, presenting the Giants with an opportunity. The argument against trading Slayton would be that Ross is on a one-year contract while the Auburn product still has another year left on his deal.
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