Alexander Wilson
The New York Giants have a real talent in Theo Johnson, and that is what makes the drops so frustrating. He has the frame, movement skills, and catch radius of a premium tight end. He just cannot keep giving away critical plays.
Johnson is 6-foot-6 with the athletic profile to stress linebackers and safeties, and when he catches the ball cleanly, he looks like the kind of player who can punish defenses up the seam. There are not many tight ends with his size who can move like that.
The issue is obvious. The hands have to catch up to the tools.
The production says there is something here
Johnson took a real step last season, finishing with 45 catches for 528 yards and five touchdowns. He averaged 11.7 yards per reception, recorded eight catches of 20-plus yards, and became one of the few Giants pass-catchers who could actually create chunk plays in the middle of the field.
That matters. The Giants have spent years trying to find reliable tight end production, and Johnson already gave them more than a flash. He played 15 games, started 15, and handled a role that was probably bigger than it should have been given where he was in his development.
But the drops were brutal. Five drops on 74 targets is not some tiny footnote, especially when several came in spots where the Giants desperately needed a drive to stay alive. Those are the plays that shift the conversation from “young player growing” to “you cannot keep doing this.”
Isaiah Likely can help him breathe
The Isaiah Likely addition should take pressure off Johnson in a good way. Likely is not just a blocker or a depth piece, and the Giants did not pay him like one. He arrives after posting 27 catches for 307 yards and one touchdown last season, and the team clearly sees him as a move tight end who can work the seams, flats, screens, and red-zone looks.
That should let Johnson settle into a more efficient role. He does not have to be the only tight end winning against safeties. He does not have to be the only big target Jaxson Dart trusts over the middle. He can get cleaner matchups, fewer forced targets, and more chances to use his size without every third down feeling like a referendum.
The Giants have already leaned into the idea of using Likely creatively, and that matters for the entire tight end room. More 12 personnel, more motion, more disguised releases, and more stress on linebackers should make Johnson’s job easier.
The ceiling is still high
The Giants should not give up on Johnson because of a few ugly moments. The talent is too obvious, and the production was too useful for that. Tight ends often take time, and Johnson is still early enough in his career to make a real jump.
But the standard has to rise. Premium tight ends do not just look good getting off the bus. They win leverage, catch through contact, stay on schedule, and make quarterbacks feel safe throwing over the middle. Johnson has pieces of that profile, but he has to become more trustworthy.
Likely’s arrival gives him cover. Dart’s development should give him more stable quarterback play. The offensive structure should be better than last year’s scattered mess.
Now Johnson has to do his part. If he cuts the drops down, the Giants may have a breakout tight end already sitting on the roster. If he does not, all the size and athleticism in the world will just keep teasing them.
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