New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton.
It’s possible that wide receiver Darius Slayton has played his last meaningful snap as a member of the New York Giants.
ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reported on Wednesday afternoon that Slayton has not yet shown up for the Giants’ voluntary offseason program because the 27-year-old wants a contract extension from the team. Per Raanan and Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, Slayton is in the final year of a deal that is set to pay him roughly $6.2M, including a base salary of $2.5M.
The Giants theoretically shouldn’t want to lose any additional offensive contributors considering star running back Saquon Barkley signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in free agency, while tight end Darren Waller could seemingly announce his retirement at any point. According to ESPN stats, Slayton finished the 2023 season third on the Giants with 50 receptions, first with 79 targets, first with 770 receiving yards and tied for first with four receiving touchdowns.
However, the Giants spent a 2022 second-round draft pick on receiver Wan’Dale Robinson before they used a 2023 third-round choice to land wideout Jalin Hyatt. Many believe a New York team that finished this past season at 6-11 will use the sixth overall pick of the 2024 draft to grab an advertised WR1, so general manager Joe Schoen may ultimately deem before the first round gets underway on April 25 that Slayton is worth more to the club as a tradeable asset.
Specifically, analysts have routinely linked the Giants with LSU Tigers wide receiver Malik Nabers and Washington Huskies star Rome Odunze. In a mock draft published on Wednesday, Dane Brugler of The Athletic noted that Nabers “would have been my No. 1 overall prospect in each of the last two draft classes.”
Raanan mentioned that Slayton “is a favorite of” New York starting quarterback Daniel Jones. That may mean little to Schoen and company, as multiple offseason reports have claimed the Giants could part ways with Jones as soon as next offseason.
The Giants may not move up this year’s draft order from the sixth pick for a top-tier quarterback prospect, but acquiring an asset for Slayton could help Schoen make a trade that would allow the executive to select Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. or Bo Nix of the Oregon Ducks at some point next week.
Want more articles like this? Follow Yardbarker on MSN to see more of our exclusive NFL content.
More must-reads:
Trending slideshow: Ranking the next five-year windows for each NFL team (Provided by Yardbarker)
News Related-
Russian court extends detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich until end of January
-
Russian court extends detention of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, arrested on espionage charges
-
Israel's economy recovered from previous wars with Hamas, but this one might go longer, hit harder
-
Stock market today: Asian shares mixed ahead of US consumer confidence and price data
-
EXCLUSIVE: ‘Sister Wives' star Christine Brown says her kids' happy marriages inspired her leave Kody Brown
-
NBA fans roast Clippers for losing to Nuggets without Jokic, Murray, Gordon
-
Panthers-Senators brawl ends in 10-minute penalty for all players on ice
-
CNBC Daily Open: Is record Black Friday sales spike a false dawn?
-
Freed Israeli hostage describes deteriorating conditions while being held by Hamas
-
High stakes and glitz mark the vote in Paris for the 2030 World Expo host
-
Biden’s unworkable nursing rule will harm seniors
-
Jalen Hurts: We did what we needed to do when it mattered the most
-
LeBron James takes NBA all-time minutes lead in career-worst loss
-
Vikings' Kevin O'Connell to evaluate Josh Dobbs, path forward at QB