When the New York Giants entered the 2025 season, there was a sense of hope that third-year wide receiver Jalin Hyatt would finally evolve into the deep threat his draft pedigree suggested. Early training camp reports even suggested the young wideout had put on muscle and refined his mindset to meet the moment.
But that hope has disappeared as Hyatt’s season has been another massive disappointment. Hyatt has been taking up one of the Giants’ valuable roster spots all season long, despite barely playing and playing poorly when he is on the field.
At this point, it’s become abundantly clear: the Giants are wasting a roster spot on a failed draft pick, and it’s time to move on.
Jalin Hyatt has hurt the Giants more than he has helped them
Despite entering the season with a full vote of confidence from QB Russell Wilson, Hyatt has once again failed to make any sort of a positive impact on the Giants’ offense. In fact, he has done more harm than good when he’s on the field.
The Giants’ quarterbacks have thrown a total of nine interceptions this season. Three of those nine interceptions have come when targeting Jalin Hyatt.
Hyatt has been targeted only 14 times this season. Three picks on 14 targets is a disastrous rate, especially when considering one of those turnovers came in the final moments of the fourth quarter and ultimately cost the Giants the game in Week 11.
Quarterbacks are posting a 4.8 passer rating when targeting Hyatt. If a quarterback spikes the ball on every single attempt, their NFL passer rating would be approximately 39.6.
In Week 15, Jaxson Dart was intercepted on a pass intended for Hyatt. However, upon further analysis, Hyatt ran a lazy route, allowing the defensive back to undercut the throw and make the interception.
Brian Baldinger broke it down, saying Dart should have been “livid” over Hyatt’s poorly run route.
Bad things happen when Hyatt gets targeted in the passing game. He does not produce nearly enough positive plays to justify the negative ones. His impact on the game hurts the Giants more than it helps them.
The Giants wasted a valuable roster spot on Hyatt all season
With only three games left to play, it’s unlikely that the Giants will release Hyatt before the season’s end. But they could make him a healthy scratch in these final games, making way for other players to contribute—a move the coaching staff already flirted with earlier this year when they buried the former third-round pick on the depth chart.
Regardless, Hyatt’s time with the Giants is likely coming to an end. Considering the lack of development and lack of production he has had through three seasons, the team won’t be eager to give him another roster spot next season — especially if a new general manager is in charge.
It seemed this season as though Hyatt was given a roster spot purely to save face. The Giants traded up for him in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft, expecting him to quickly become a starter in their offense. But, unfortunately, that never materialized, Hyatt fell out of favor with the coaching staff, and even reportedly “checked out” last season.
Despite all this, he still had a roster spot. That was an unforced error from the Giants’ front office. He had not truly earned his roster spot, so the fact that he had one made it seem like the front office just didn’t want to admit they missed on another high draft pick.
Nevertheless, the season has come and gone, the Giants are 2-11, Hyatt still has yet to score his first career touchdown, and major changes will be underway for the team this offseason.
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