5 Giants who need to see more playing time moving forward

With the NY Giants season being a bit of a lost one in 2023, the team will enter Sunday's tilt with the Patriots at 3-8. Yes, it's disappointing, but now is the time for players on both sides of the ball to show the staff what they can do not only for the rest of the campaign, but the future too.

These five players have all shown flashes of potential this season, but have yet to receive the proper amount of snaps to fully show it off. Now, with many of the remaining games for the Giants being meaningless, we hope to see them get an increase in snaps:

5. DB Nick McCloud

With the amount of small injuries the Giants have faced this fall, we have seen Nick McCloud have some games where he's gotten a decent amount of snaps. While he hasn't been perfect, McCloud has shown a ton of flashes and could very well be a genuine part of New York's secondary moving forward.

McCloud has been with the Giants since 2022 and in these two years he has showcased a good bit of potential, but for one reason or another, he's never gotten a sustainable amount of snaps. In recent weeks, though, McCloud has been given the snaps he deserves and it's paid off pretty damn well for New York.

Through the last three weeks, McCloud has played 116 snaps, allowing six receptions on nine targets for 60 yards, zero touchdowns, and one interception. Throughout the season in general as well, McCloud has allowed a passer rating of 40.3. He's not the most consistent, but McCloud has been good in coverage while also remaining a good open-field tackler like he always has been. Look for him to get more involved.

4. OT Tyre Phillips

During the absence of Evan Neal, former third-round pick Tyre Phillips has been forced to start and in this time, he's looked pretty damn solid. At the very least, he's been a good bit better than Neal, which isn't really saying much. Regardless, if he keeps this level of play up in the next couple of weeks, Phillips should undoubtedly remain the starter regardless of if Neal is back or not.

Phillips hasn't been perfect and has definitely had his rough moments as a starter. However, his floor in terms of performance is so much higher than that of Neal's and the Giants offense simply looks better with him on the field.

In five games this season, Phillips has allowed 12 pressures and two sacks and has had three games where he's allowed one pressure or less. When you compare this to Neal, who has just one game in which he's done this through seven matchups, it paints a bigger picture of who the better player is.

Could Neal be better in the long run? Yes, without a doubt. However, it seems less and less likely each passing week that Neal will reach the potential that made him worthy of a No. 7 overall selection. He's shown almost no progression in two seasons and has consistently been outplayed by Phillips when given the opportunity.

3. DT Jordon Riley

A player who I'm honestly surprised hasn't seen the field much this season is seventh-round pick Jordon Riley. While the Giants have plenty of IDL depth, Riley received a ton of praise from both fans and the team's coaching staff after his preseason play. With Leonard Williams gone, you'd think Riley would see the field more.

Despite this, Riley hasn't played since Week 6 and I'm kind of disappointed by it. However, with Dexter Lawrence listed as doubtful going into this week's matchup against the Patriots, the Giants are going to be down to four interior defensive linemen, so it only makes sense that Riley finally sees the field again.

Like I said, Riley was pretty damn good in the preseason for the Giants. While his box score numbers aren't super crazy, watching him play showed that he was willing to eat up double teams and fill gaps to both make life more difficult for opposing offenses, and easier for the Giants' linebackers. With Lawrence probably out, let's hope Riley gets more reps.

2. LB Isaiah Simmons

The emergence of Micah McFadden this season has caused newly-acquired Isaiah Simmons to take a bit of a backseat. However, whenever on the field, Simmons has produced and it could very well lead to an increase of snaps as the Giants finally realize they aren't playing for anything in the second half of the season.

Simmons has still provided a good bit for the Giants despite playing a career-low in snaps. Not only has he been solid as a run-stopper, but he's been one of the best coverage linebackers in the NFL according to PFF. On the season, Simmons has a coverage grade of 84.6, which ranks sixth out of all linebackers in the league.

Just like McCloud, Simmons is very versatile as well, this is one of the biggest reasons he was taken No. 8 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. Simmons has seen snaps in the box, out in the slot, and on the edge as well. His game-sealing interception vs. the Commanders was unreal. That play alone has fans calling for Wink Martindale to play him more.

1. WR Jalin Hyatt

Almost every time Jalin Hyatt has been targeted, the Giants have had success. However, for one reason or another, he hasn't been utilized quite like we were hoping for him to be. With Darius Slayton battling an arm injury, it could open the door for Hyatt to get more targets.

On the season, Hyatt has played just 244 snaps in which he's caught 12 passes on 22 targets for 221 yards, only dropping one pass which was all the way back in Week 1. There are a lot of factors going into Hyatt's lack of production, such as poor QB play and a lack of time for plays to develop for him, but we're hopeful it gets turned around soon.

We've seen Tommy DeVito not hesitate to throw the ball deep like Daniel Jones, which gives Hyatt the best chance he's had in weeks to make some big-time plays. Hyatt is incredibly talented and his overall skillset as a pass catcher has become very underrated simply because the Giants don't give him many opportunities to do much other than run deep routes. Let's hope Hyatt can get on track this weekend vs. the Pats.