Lions should be in the mix for Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton
If the New York Giants are looking to move Darius Slayton, the Detroit Lions should be among the teams with real interest.
The New York Giants dropped to 2-6 with a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs Monday night, and tight end Evan Engram has been the subject of trade rumors. On Tuesday morning, as the time before the trade deadline becomes hours, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton could be on the move.
Slayton played and played a lot (52 snaps, 87 percent snap share) on Monday night, not that you could tell based on the stat sheet (zero catches on two targets). A hamstring injury cost him three games earlier this season, and he has 12 catches for 190 yards and a touchdown in five games played–though he barely played before being injured in Week 3 (13 snaps). In four games he has played a lot in, he has topped 50 yards on at least six targets three times.
Slayton had 48 catches for 740 yards and eight touchdowns as a rookie in 2019, then he had 50 receptions for 751 yards with three touchdowns in 2020.
Lions should be in on Darius Slayton
It’s well-documented how bad, or flat-out unproven, the Lions’ wide receivers are as a whole. Kalif Raymond and Amon-Ra St. Brown have shown promise, but regardless of any move to add someone before Tuesday afternoon’s deadline the position will be an offseason need.
With another cheap year left on his contract after this one, due to being a fifth-round pick, Slayton should be a fairly popular trade target and Rapoport clearly has information indicating just that. He’s not a No. 1 wide receiver, but he’s definitely got some talent and can help a lot of teams. The Giants are among the teams he can help, but they may be ready to sell some pieces in the midst of another dismal season and Slayton appears to be among them.
For the Lions, acquiring any wide receiver before 4 p.m ET Tuesday depends on asking price and fit in equal measure. It probably won’t take much to get Slayton, and in a broad sense he certainly makes sense as a bit of a flier.
