Kudos to tight end Daniel Bellinger for putting together an impressive Week 5 performance to save himself from this spot. The 25-year-old ended the game with four receptions for 52 yards. He was one of the few bright spots for the New York Giants in an otherwise brutal afternoon. The same cannot be said of wide receiver Darius Slayton.
Sunday’s effort against the New Orleans Saints all but confirmed the G-Men can no longer wait for him to figure it out. The 28-year-old caught three of his six targets for 31 yards. That’s not an objectively horrible stat line, but context matters.
The seventh-year wideout struggled with consistency and execution for the full 60 minutes. His two drops were tough — one on a potential electric flea-flicker. But nothing was worse than his first-half fumble, which killed an essential drive that could have put Big Blue up 21-13 heading into halftime. His Week 5 struggles were a sliver of his 2025 struggles in general, and it’s time fans call it how it is.
Giants can’t keep pretending Darius Slayton is a reliable option
Slayton signed a three-year, $36 million deal to stay and run it back with the G-Men. It was a relatively shocking decision at the time, but the thought was his quiet leadership on and off the field would help an up-and-coming roster.
The former Auburn Tiger was voted team captain before the season kicked off, so the locker-room benefits seemed to have clicked. However, his 12 receptions for 166 yards and zero touchdowns through five games leave a lot to be desired.
It’s not like this came out of nowhere. He’s never eclipsed 800 receiving yards in a single season. Yet head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen want fans to believe he’s a valid secondary receiving option — the primary when Malik Nabers is out? Get out of here with that.
His recent contract will make it difficult for Big Blue to move off him, but it’s getting to the point where a change of scenery feels like a must. Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart needs veterans like Slayton to be reliable. How is Dart supposed to navigate the waters of the NFL with one of the biggest liabilities as his top receiving threat?
Even more so, how is their 22-year-old potential franchise signal-caller supposed to win with Slayton, Wan'Dale Robinson, Jalin Hyatt, and Beaux Collins as his receivers? It's a joke.
"Big Play Slate" left the Saints game in the fourth quarter with an apparent hamstring injury, so that’ll be something to monitor moving forward.
Things are going from bad to worse for Darius Slayton. It’s likely too early to pull the plug on the 2019 fifth-round pick, but things must change quickly with Leek out for the season if he wants to get back into the organization’s good graces.
Don't just take my word for it. Big Blue Nation is pretty fed up with the middling receiver as well:
Never knew I needed a Rueben Randle flashback:
Darius Slayton is lowkey just a glorified Reuben Randle
— Depressed giants fan (@takesthesnap) October 6, 2025
I didn't know what I was thinking at the time, but I am sorry:
People covering the Giants telling you Darius Slayton NEEDED to be re signed is the definition of gaslighting.
— Mikey Hot Takez (@Mikelly_12) October 6, 2025
Not all of us:
People actually thought it would be a good idea to roll with Darius Slayton, Wan'Dale Robinson, Beaux Collins and Jalin Hyatt with a rookie QB
— Marshall Green (@MarshallGreen_) October 5, 2025
But mismanaging the roster is kinda exactly what this front office is known for:
Can’t believe we overpaid Darius Slayton like a true WR1 just to be mid
— AJ HNDRX (@TopRamaan) October 5, 2025
Sad part is, they're not wrong:
Darius Slayton would be a #4 WR on most teams smh #Giants
— Sirgeo (@DKG247) October 5, 2025
Let the trade rumors fly:
Darius Slayton should be off this team by trade deadline idc
— DUFFY ♒️ (@DuffyBag5) October 5, 2025
Who needs a trade when you can just release him tomorrow? Don't let him on the plane home!
Release Darius Slayton today. As in right now. Those two drops killed us!
— Andrew (@andrewjourdan47) October 5, 2025