EAST RUTHERFORD — New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton can sense it, can see it.
An offense that finished 30th in the league in total offense is on the cusp of turning the corner.
Thanks in part to Russell Wilson‘s arrival as the starting quarterback, and dynamic second-year wide receiver Malik Nabers aiming to build on an electrifying rookie season, Slayton can see the sparks with potential to ignite an explosive offense.
“When you have as much talent as we have, we have no excuse not to be explosive,” Slayton told Heavy, following Thursday’s training camp practice. “You look around, and we have all these guys that can run, can make people miss, we have no excuse not to be explosive.
“I think that’s our mentality. The way we’re trying to play, the way we have played throughout training camp, and hopefully we’ll be able to play that way throughout the season.”
Nabers caught 109 passes for 1,204 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games as a rookie, and is already building a strong chemistry with Wilson, and looks even more difficult to cover on routes deep downfield.
The Giants have a long way to go, though, after posting just 29 explosive plays of 25 yards or more last season–sixth fewest in the NFL, but New York believes with Wilson’s propensity for taking shots downfield, Nabers’ field-stretching ability, and Slayton’s savviness as a route-runner with reliable hands combined with potential contributors in Jalin Hyatt and Wan’Dale Robinson, that this season can be different.
“That’s certainly a goal,” Giants head coach Brian Daboll said prior to practice, of adding more explosive plays. “We’re working at it. You can talk about it all you want, you got to go out there and do it.
“You’re always trying to generate explosive plays, so again, you can generate them a variety of ways. We’re working on them every way we can to create some explosives because it’s a huge indicator of wins and losses, both on the offensive side and then preventing them on the defensive side.”
Montrell Washington Emerging for Giants at WR
Ishika Samant | GettyNew York Giants rookie QB Jaxson Dart is building a strong chemistry with wide receiver Montrell Washington.
The top of the Giants’ depth chart is going to command the attention and is what’s sparking so much optimism about the offense, but, one of New York’s young receivers is putting together a fast start to training camp.
Thursday, Montrell Washington made a really nice sliding catch over the middle of the field on a pass by rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, that split defenders for a big gain and first down during a full-team period.
Washington’s athletic grab came on the heels of a strong practice earlier in the week where he flashed reliable hands during a one-on-one period, which caught Daboll’s attention.
“He made a couple of nice plays in that one on one,” Daboll said prior to Thursday’s practice. “Two good balls by Jaxson, two good catches by him. He’s learning the system, new to the system but he’s got some quickness and he’s done a nice job of what we’ve asked him to do.”
Washington, originally chosen by the Denver Broncos in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL Draft, out of Sanford, spent the past two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs where he appeared in seven games as a return specialist with eight punt returns and pair of kickoff returns over that span.
In 15 games with the Broncos, Washington caught four passes for two years, and is looking to latch onto a role with the Giants this summer. If he can continue to string together strong practices and make some plays during the season, Washington could push for a roster spot and some quality snaps this fall.
Read a full recap of the sights, sounds and top plays from Thursday’s Giants Training Camp Practice
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