After another up-and-down offseason for Jalin Hyatt, the former Tennessee football star showed why he could still carve out an effective NFL career on Thursday night. In the first quarter of the New York Giants’ preseason game against the New England Patriots, Hyatt went deep and came down with a 27-yard touchdown grab from the arm of Jameis Winston.
Hyatt would finish the game with three catches for 38 yards and the touchdown. This was tied for the fourth-most receiving yards on the team. Ultimately, this was just a piece of the Giants’ dominant 42-10 win over the Patriots to cap off their preseason.
Hyatt did not play in the first game of the preseason due to an undisclosed injury. In the team’s second game against the New York Jets, he made his 2025 debut. He grabbed one reception for 21 yards in the win. The Giants went 3-0 in the preseason this year with a win over the Buffalo Bills without Hyatt in their first game.
Familiar sight for Tennessee fans:
Jalin Hyatt takes the top off the defense for a score ⬇️
— Rocky Top Insider (@rockytopinsider) August 22, 2025
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This year, the Giants bring in Russell Wilson as the projected starter. While Hyatt’s touchdown grab was a strike from Winston, Wilson has been the one to sing the former Vols’ praises this offseason.
“I saw him do it in college not too long ago,” Wilson said. “I also saw him make some big-time plays. And then at the National Football League, I remember he had this sweet catch against Arizona that he went up and snagged it over somebody’s head. He did it at home (in New York) once. Just multiple times he’s made some great plays.”
Hyatt enters his third season in the NFL, all with the Giants. He was selected by New York in the third round of the 2023 draft, but has struggled to see consistent playtime. So far, he has totaled 31 receptions for 435 yards in his pro career. He is yet to score a touchdown.
Wilson went on to discuss what it will take for him and Hyatt to build a connection that will boost these numbers and help him earn a consistent role.
“The biggest thing is just that consistency that I can bring to him every day, too,” Wilson said. “Just making sure that I’m always giving him extra opportunities down the field. Also, not just down the field, in any play we got. Spending extra time on the field. He’s got a great work ethic, Jalin does. I think he’s got great grit to him. I think that he wants to be great every day. He’s got all the special pieces to it all. What makes a great receiver is his ability to catch the ball. In contested situations, he does a great job of that.”
In college, Hyatt put together one of the best seasons in program history in 2022. Including his five-touchdown game against Alabama to help seal the historic win, he produced 1,267 yards and 15 touchdowns on 67 receptions.
He was named the Fred Biletnikoff Award winner (the first in program history), an unanimous All-American and First-Team All-SEC member.
