Every offense needs a home run hitter, a receiver that can get deep and take the top off a defense.
For years, the New York Giants did not have such a player. After selecting Tennessee’s Jalin Hyatt in the third round of the 2023 NFL draft, they now have one.
This dude hung 207 yards and 5 TDs on Alabama.
Now @jalinhyatt’s headed to the @Giants. @Vol_Football pic.twitter.com/zQztMFL7tc
— NFL (@NFL) April 29, 2023
In 2022, Jalin Hyatt led the nation in 40+ yard receptions (11), 50+ yard catches (7) and 60+ yard catches (5). His 11 40+ yard catches were better than eight SEC teams’ entire total for the season. He had five 100-yard receiving games on the year, which led the SEC. pic.twitter.com/HIxd4agCNS
— Fennelly on Football (@John_Fennelly) April 29, 2023
How does Hyatt fit in the very crowded Giants’ wide receiver room? Anywhere he wants. He will play immediately and will be given assignments where the Giants can exploit his explosiveness via mismatches, of which there are likely to be many,
Hyatt is a first-round talent who is a classic headache for defensive coordinators. Defenses must account for his speed and either try to take him out at the line or take their chances in space. He is nearly impossible to defend with single coverage and that will open things up for the Giants on offense in a way not seen here since the days of Homer Jones and Victor Cruz. Get ready for some big plays.
Hyatt joins a wide receiver room that has gone from a bare-bone outfit to a talent-rich one with a plethora of options.
The Giants began the offseason with only one healthy wideout under contract — Isaiah Hodgins — with Wan’Dale Robinson and Collin Johnson recovering from season-ending injuries.
Then general manager Joe Schoen went to work, re-signing Sterling Shepard and Darius Shepard and adding Parris Campbell, Jeff Smith, and Jamison Crowder in free agency.
The masterful trade with Las Vegas for stud tight end Darren Waller was the splashiest move of the offseason by Schoen until Hyatt somehow slipped through the cracks into the third round of the draft.
In this writer’s opinion, Hyatt is every bit the playmaker that first-rounders Jordan Addison and Zay Flowers are. He can play anywhere and take the football to the house with more regularity than any other player in this draft.
