New York Giants wide receiver Jalin Hyatt believes fans won’t have to wait long this year for him to score his first touchdown.
The electric second-year player out of Tennessee caught 23 of his 40 targets for 373 yards last season as a rookie but failed to get into the end zone.
“Week 1,” Hyatt told the New York Post when asked when he’ll finally hit pay dirt.
“I’m hungry. I’ve never had a season in my life of not scoring a touchdown. That stays with me. That will probably stay with me for the rest of my life. I’ll be ready.”
This coming from a kid who once scored five times in a single game in college against mighty Alabama. That, and his blazing speed (he was clocked at 24 MPH last summer in camp) led the Giants to trade up to snare him in the third round of last year’s NFL draft.
“Not going to make excuses,” Hyatt said. “I had plenty of opportunities last year, but we couldn’t connect. You can’t look at the past. It’s all about the present and the future.”
As the Giants prepare to open their summer training camp next week, Hyatt feels he’s in a much better place; more comfortable with his surroundings and teammates.
He has worked out frequently with quarterback Daniel Jones and the Giants’ other playmakers this past offseason. He sees Jones making a full comeback from ACL surgery this year and is champing at the bit to get his promising career going.
“I’ve been with D.J. the majority of the time of my offseason,” Hyatt said. “He looks good, he’s back running, and I can’t wait to be back in camp. It’s that time. Seeing how confident he is — especially after all the setbacks he went through throughout his career — it’s impressive. I love seeing him get after it.”
Hyatt is a member of a young receiving corps that includes other high draft picks Malik Nabers and Wan’Dale Robinson.
Hyatt believes the NFL isn’t quite paying attention to the young trio and might just be ‘sleeping’ on them.
“Yes, they are,” Hyatt said. “We can say what it is now, but we have to go on the field and make it happen. That’s what we’re going to do — talk with our actions. We have four or five dynamic receivers — all of us confident, all of us want the ball. We’re going to be explosive this year.”
If that happens, the Giants could finally be a force to be reckoned with on offense.
