Giants add returner/receiver Richie James Jr.
San Francisco 49ers' Richie James Jr. runs in front of Green Bay Packers' Ty Summers during the first half of the NFC Championship Game Sunday, Jan. 19, 2020, in Santa Clara, Calif. Credit: AP/Tony Avelar
The Giants agreed to terms with free agent wide receiver and kick returner Richie James Jr. on Friday.
The former 49er will sign a one-year deal pending his physical after missing all of last season with a knee injury. Prior to that James caught a career-high 23 passes in 2020, including nine in a prime time game against the Packers.
His value is mostly on special teams, though, where the 5-9, 185-pounder has returned 51 punts for 373 yards (7.3-yard average) and 47 kickoffs for 1,081 yards (23.0-yard average) including a 97-yard touchdown as a rookie in 2018.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
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