Giants rookie receiver Jalin Hyatt receives praise from OC Mike Kafka
Jalin Hyatt, Giants wide receiver, practices during camp at Quest Diagnostics Training Center in East Rutherford, NJ on Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. Credit: James Escher
With the first preseason game in the books, the Giants coaches can evaluate the players through a different lens.
Asked about rookie Jalin Hyatt’s performance on Friday night at Ford Field against the Lions, offensive coordinator Mike Kafka said Hyatt “did some nice things.”
Hyatt had one reception for minus-4 yards in the game. He was not given the opportunity to show his speed at Ford Field.
“He didn’t have a bunch of targets, but he was in the right spot and where we wanted him to be,” Kafka said. “Again, those young guys are just growing and continuing to get better, and we’ll get them in our mix as we keep on going through the preseason.”
At Tennessee, Hyatt played in more of a spread offense. In the NFL, there are more stack formations. Kafka was asked if the Giants have tried to make “that transition easier” for Hyatt.
“When we went through the scouting process with him [we identified] things that we think he does well. He’s one of those players [who is] growing and developing a role for himself.”
As for the veteran receivers on the Giants roster, all of them seem to have had great moments on the practice field. The cutdown at that position will be particularly interesting.
Cole Beasley, Parris Campbell, Jamison Crowder, Isaiah Hodgins, Collin Johnson, Darius Slayton and Sterling Shepard are among the Giants battling for roster spots at receiver. The Giants could keep seven receivers.
Perhaps all of them will get a chance in the second preseason game, at 7 p.m. Friday at MetLife Stadium.
“It’s a competitive deal so all those guys are in the mix, right?” Kafka said. “So, you try to put them in the best spot to show what they’re about and give themselves an opportunity to make some plays.”
Notes & quotes: When special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey stepped to the podium Tuesday, he got right to the point, addressing the blocked punt at Ford Field that caused coach Brian Daboll to deliver an intense side-eye to his special teams coordinator.
“All right, let’s just address the 700-pound gorilla in the room, right?”, he said. “We all know Dabs is intense and on game day, that’s just him. It’s not a big deal, it’s happened before. That’s just part of the game. He’s an intense guy, we have no issues. That’s just part of football, it’s an intense game.… Asked specifically about Shepard, who is trying to make the roster after sustaining two back-to-back season-ending injuries, Kafka left open the possibility that Shepard could play Friday. “Shep’s continuing to put together really good days of work. He’s growing within the system; he’s doing a good job with his rehab and prehab and running around. He looked really clean out there [Monday], so we’ll just keep on working with him and as the week goes on, make a decision … In one particularly efficient set of team drills Tuesday, Daniel Jones drew a flag for pass interference on a pass intended for Darius Slayton, found Hyatt for a completion, hit Parris Campbell in the left flat, went back to Campbell on the right side, had one busted play, handed the ball off to Saquon Barkley twice, found Waller on play action and threw a touchdown to Isaiah Hodgins.
Kimberly Jones covers the Giants for Newsday, a beat she first worked in the early 2000s before joining the YES Network to cover the Yankees. She worked for the NFL Network for more than a decade and has been heard semi-regularly on WFAN.
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