In what’s becoming a lost season for the New York Giants, silver linings are hard to come by — and stomach — but there are ways for the team to salvage value from the wreckage.
Put another way: The Giants could decide to become sellers ahead of the NFL trade deadline (Nov. 5 at 4 p.m.) and start stockpiling assets for the future. If that’s the road they choose to travel, they have some interesting veterans they could move who have taken advantage of their situations lately and potentially boosted their trade appeal.
The Giants (2-6) play one more game, Sunday against the NFC East division rival Washington Commanders, ahead of the deadline to help shore up final thoughts. As tough as it is for front offices to trade away quality contributors in the middle of the season, moving some veterans could best serve the future of the franchise.
With the Giants at the same point record-wise they’ve been for the seventh time in eight years, looking ahead to 2025 is becoming the most realistic course of action. And with quarterback Daniel Jones’ future uncertain and the Giants likely looking for his replacement in the draft, acquiring draft capital for next spring could only benefit that search.
Giants general manager Joe Schoen has proven to be amenable to dealing at the deadline before: He sent Kadarius Toney to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2022 and Leonard Williams to the Seattle Seahawks last year.
My colleague, Dan Duggan, broke down the Giants’ top 2024 trade chips and what they could expect in return in a deal in great detail last week. But in the Giants’ most recent outing, Monday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers, there were well-timed displays from two of the most probable trade candidates: wide receiver Darius Slayton and edge Azeez Ojulari.
Let’s break down each player’s recent performance and perhaps their boosted trade appeal:
Darius Slayton
A 2019 fifth-round pick, Slayton (29 catches, 420 yards) has been a reliable target for Jones for years. In fact, he’s led the Giants in receiving four of the past five seasons. It seems unlikely he’ll repeat as the team’s receiving champ this year, given the presence of rookie standout Malik Nabers (46 catches, 498 yards), but he’s once again proving he can be a valuable contributor to a passing offense.
His opportunities were limited early in the season as Nabers gobbled up a huge portion of the team’s target share. But Slayton, 27, excelled (eight receptions for 122 yards and one touchdown) in the Giants’ win over Seattle in Week 5 when Nabers was out with a concussion.
Though both receivers were on the field the past two games, Slayton still managed to tally the seventh 100-yard receiving game of his career on Monday night in Pittsburgh. He recorded 108 yards on four receptions, reeling in two deep balls of 35-plus yards in the matchup. Slayton has always been a solid vertical threat, and there are plenty of offenses around the league that could use someone with his skill set and track record of reliability.
While the Giants would surely like to keep him in their offense, his days in New York could be numbered — trade or not.
Slayton, who is set to hit free agency this winter, signed a two-year deal in 2023 but expressed unhappiness over the compensation this offseason. The Giants have primarily relied on Nabers, Slayton and Wan’Dale Robinson this season, but if they deal Slayton, that could open the door for the team to put more emphasis on Jalin Hyatt as their deep threat while bringing up Isaiah Hodgins from the practice squad.
“Just see what happens,” Slayton said Wednesday when asked about his future in New York. “It’s not my first time being in the buzz during this time of year. Kind of like I’ve always done in the past is just show up, I do my job and where the chips fall, they fall.”
DJ DEEP to Slayton 🚀
📺: ESPN pic.twitter.com/naRWTC5mcx
— New York Giants (@Giants) October 29, 2024
Teams have already been active on the trade front, especially in the wide receiver market, but there are still plenty of teams chasing a ring that could use another reliable wide receiver. The most recent addition to the group is the Houston Texans, who recently lost Stefon Diggs to a season-ending ACL tear.
If the Giants traded Slayton, they would create $1.8 million in cap savings and could probably expect a Day 3 pick in return for him. While the executive Duggan spoke with pegged Slayton’s value as a sixth- or seventh-round pick, it at least seems possible Slayton could have boosted his value with his excellent performance against Pittsburgh. If he shows up again Sunday against Washington, well, that could only help.
Azeez Ojulari
Though he was about to enter a contract year, Ojulari seemed to fade into the background with the offseason acquisition of Brian Burns. The move relegated the 24-year-old Ojuari to a reserve role behind Burns and Thibodeaux, and it seemed like his time with the Giants might end without much fanfare. But Ojulari has made sure that will not be the case, even if he’s not dealt ahead of the deadline.
When an opportunity opened up for him, he’s seized the moment. In three starts since Thibodeaux suffered a wrist injury, he’s tallied five sacks, tied for most in the league in that span. On the season, Ojulari has racked up 24 tackles, seven quarterback hits and six sacks, second only to Dexter Lawrence (nine sacks) on the team and tied for 10th in the NFL.
Ojulari is now two sacks shy of matching his career-high eight sacks, a personal best he set in his tantalizing rookie season. While his career certainly hasn’t gone the way many hoped after his exciting debut season, it’s hard to argue with how well he’s timed his resurgence. With how well he’s played so far in 2024, he looks primed to score a solid second contract on the open market.
“I’m just here every day,” Ojulari said Wednesday when asked about his future in New York. “Whatever happens, happens. I’m just ready to keep working here. I love it here. I’m just ready to keep working.”
Ojulari with big sack on 3rd down!
📺: #NYGvsPIT on ESPN/ABC/ESPN2
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus and ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/h0101GUw3t— NFL (@NFL) October 29, 2024
Pretty much every contender could use a ready-made pass rusher to either start or drop into their own rotation. So what could the Giants get for him? The executive cited in Dan’s story speculated about a late Day 3 pick. That’s probably realistic, but as with Slayton, you do have to wonder if his recent uptick in performance has boosted his value. One deterrent to that outcome would be Ojulari’s injury history. He’s missed 16 games over the 2022-2023 seasons. Any team ready to acquire him might hesitate to give up too much for a player who has struggled to consistently stay on the field.
(Photo of Darius Slayton: Joe Sargent / Getty Images)
