It seemed like a perfect fit when the New York Giants traded up to select Tennessee wide receiver Jalin Hyatt in the third round of the 2023 NFL draft.
The Giants got a true speedster who can stretch the field and provide quarterback Daniel Jones with a legitimate deep threat, while Hyatt landed in a system that fits with his current level of development.
Hyatt should make an impact for the Giants right out of the gate and help open things up for the team’s other receivers. But Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report doesn’t see it that way.
In a recently compiled list of “rookies who were drafted by the wrong team,” Knox lists Hyatt with the Giants.
While Hyatt might contribute occasionally as a field-stretcher, he isn’t likely to see heavy usage early. He’s too raw to consistently line up on the perimeter, and the Giants already have a developmental speed project in 2022 second-round pick Wan’Dale Robinson.
On top of everything else, New York simply doesn’t lean heavily into the pass and ranked 25th in attempts last season. It all adds up to Hyatt having very limited production through at least the majority of his rookie contract.
Knox goes back to the pre-draft speculation that Hyatt is incapable of running the full route tree — something Giants head coach Brian Daboll has claimed is untrue. Not being able to and not being asked to are two different things and that’s just not what Tennessee wanted out of Hyatt.
But Knox continues.
Both Trevor Lawrence and Josh Allen can push the ball down the field more consistently than Daniel Jones. The Jags and Bills also have No. 1-caliber receivers in Calvin Ridley and Stefon Diggs, respectively, who could keep the early expectations for Hyatt low and command defensive attention when he’s on the field.
The Giants and their quarterback cannot provide Hyatt with the same luxuries. For a pass-catcher who will eventually want a free-agent payday, that’s unfortunate.
As it relates to the Giants and their reluctance to pass, that was primarily the result of injuries at the wide receiver position, limited separation, and lacking pass protection. If you were to rewind the tape on Jones, you may be reminded that he was one of the NFL’s most accurate and successful deep ball passers early in his career.
There are two false narratives used here to defend the position that Hyatt was drafted by the wrong team. We’ll have to revisit this opinion a year from now.
