Giants' forgotten draft pick watches Seahawks erase potential escape route

The NFL trade deadline always brings out the dreamers. Every team thinks it’s one deal away from fixing what’s broken, and every fan convinces themselves the front office might finally pull something off. For the New York Giants, the conversation’s been less about who they’re adding and more about who might be on the way out.

Jalin Hyatt’s name has been sitting in that rumor mill for weeks. The 2023 third-rounder has been healthy, available, and mostly unused. You can see why a trade made sense — the team’s going nowhere fast, and Hyatt’s role isn’t getting any bigger. A fresh start seemed like the best thing for everyone.

Related: 3 trade destinations for underwhelming draft pick Giants just gave up on

That start may have just gotten harder to find. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Seattle Seahawks traded their 2026 fourth and fifth round picks for New Orleans Saints receiver Rashid Shaheed on Tuesday:

Seattle was one of the few logical fits for Hyatt — a team that wanted a little more speed on the outside opposite Jaxon Smith-Njigba and wouldn’t have had to spend much to get it. Now that spot’s gone, and so is a clean opportunity for the G-Men to move him before Tuesday’s deadline.

Rashid Shaheed trade makes Jalin Hyatt’s bone-dry market even smaller

It’s been a frustrating stretch for Hyatt. He’s talented enough to be on the field, but the fit in New York never made sense. Three catches for 17 yards this season isn’t an accident — it’s a byproduct of an offense that never figured out how to use him.

He’s 24, healthy, and going nowhere fast.

Big Blue would love to even get a late pick for him, but with deals coming in by the minute, the market is shrinking fast. Even the blockbuster Sauce Gardner trade brought the NY Jets back receiver AD Mitchell, crossing another potential team off the board.

Buffalo, Pittsburgh, and Denver are still options, but even those feel more like could than would or should. The 2022 Biletnikoff Award winner's value has become a lot more theoretical than real — the kind of name synonymous with college production and not much else.

If nothing happens by Tuesday afternoon, he’ll stay buried on the depth chart, waiting for a role that won't find him. It'll be another missed opportunity for both the Giants and Hyatt to move forward.