Jalyn Hyatt sat in a chair in front of his locker, holding an iPad and pinching his fingers to zoom in on footage of his route running.
The receiver who set college football on fire in 2022 and showed promise as a rookie last season will have another chance Sunday to break out of the shadow of mystery that spent this season with the Giants.
Hyatt is expected to start, as Darius Slayton missed the Panthers' trip to Germany due to a concussion.
“I have a good feel for the game plan,” Hyatt told the Post after finding a groove with Daniel Jones during Thursday's practice. “I haven't had a lot of chances, but this year I've had my chances and I haven't made the most of them. Right now, it's all about staying focused, being open, trusting DJ and catching the ball.” And we just have to take advantage of that.”
Hyatt had one catch for 6 yards in eight games.
The speedy, deep-ball threat who was a starter at the start of training camp was now expected to have at least one catch for 10 times that many yards as part of a deeper resume.
Instead, Hyatt has played as many as 64 snaps per game in games Malik Nabors has been absent, and just seven total over the past three games, including zero against the Steelers on Oct. 28. He wasn't snapping.
“The last thing you want to do is make it worse,” Hiatt said. “What makes it worse is when things aren’t going your way, you don’t care or you don’t give your best.When I was a sophomore at Tennessee, I used to give up when I couldn’t play. I changed that my junior year, so I've been through some adversity and I'm using the tools to improve when I don't have a lot of opportunities.”
Hyatt had 1,267 catches and 67 touchdowns as a junior, won the Biletnikoff Award given to the nation's best receiver, and is willing to move up to No. 3 in the draft in a trade to the Giants for a fourth-round pick. gave. he.
Two years later, the Giants haven't even called for end-arounds or bubble screens to see if Hyatt's explosiveness can wake up the NFL's lowest-scoring offense.
He has been targeted five times on throws of 20 yards or more.
“When we talk about the game plan, we're talking about putting them in certain positions,” offensive coordinator Mike Kafka said. “I don't think he had enough opportunities to make that happen. They could show up any week. When they showed up, I was confident Jarrin could make those plays. ”
Hyatt can't say for sure why he hasn't contributed as much to the offensive line.
The simplest explanation is that the Giants remain relatively healthy at receiver, so Slayton, Nabors, and Wan'Dale Robinson rarely leave the field.
But when Hyatt was in a similar position as he is now, Nabers missed two games.
Nabors' position and Slayton's position on offense have slightly different assignments.
“We're all competitors and I want to be out there every moment and believe I should be out there,” Hiatt said. “Last year I definitely had more chances and played more, but every season is different. You can't control the playing time or the goals. For me, it's about doing everything the right way. It's a way to seize opportunities… [coach Brian Daboll] You can trust me. That's my goal. ”
Hyatt's teammates have praised the approach he has taken in his limited role.
After all, Slayton will be a free agent after the season and Hyatt will be signed for two more years.
“He was always stuck at home, even when his number wasn't being called,” Robinson said. “He's getting extra reps with his coach and getting over certain spots that he might not be in in case someone goes down. It's a tough position, so it's tough for him too. I know the guy is tired, but he was the ultimate teammate.”
That explanation includes working on the receiver's finer points, such as release from the line of scrimmage.
Or he might catch a pass after practice and “put himself in an uncomfortable position on the soccer field.”
“What I like to do is find anything I can do without thinking about it,” Hiatt said. “I look at the defense, understand my assignments and play fast.”
