Former Tennessee Vols WR Jalin Hyatt will get another chance to face NFL superstar who talked major trash to him as a rookie
One of the most memorable moments of former Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt's young NFL career came in a preseason game during his rookie season. Hyatt, a third round selection by the New York Giants in the 2023 NFL Draft, had a bit of a run-in with New York Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner […]
One of the most memorable moments of former Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt's young NFL career came in a preseason game during his rookie season.
Hyatt, a third round selection by the New York Giants in the 2023 NFL Draft, had a bit of a run-in with New York Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner during a preseason game in 2023.
Gardner talked some trash to Hyatt during the matchup, which was caught by the Hard Knocks mics.
Later in that game, Hyatt ran past Gardner on a play that resulted in an incomplete pass.
Despite the incompletion, Hyatt's route made the rounds on social media, which didn't sit well with Gardner.
"I'm not going to lie, this is a game that I wanted kinda bad," said Gardner after the Jets played the Giants during the 2023 regular season. "Because anytime I went on Twitter, I'm seeing an incomplete pass that's like a big Super Bowl winning play. It's like, why [are] they doing all of this over an incomplete pass."
"I couldn't wait to go against them," added Gardner. "It wasn't just the thing with Hyatt — that was the incomplete [pass]. It wasn't just a thing for him, it was just them in general. Because he's (Hyatt) a good receiver, he's going to be pretty good."
Gardner and Hyatt met again on the field before the 2024 season when the Jets and the Giants got together for joint practices.
The two-time Pro Bowl cornerback offered plenty of praise for Hyatt, noting that he saw some improvement in the former Vol's game.
"Jalin Hyatt, he did a great job today," said Gardner last August. "I went up against Jalin Hyatt last year…and I can see he's improved a lot this year from last year. I could tell he's more comfortable with his speed. He's able to run more routes on the route tree, that's one thing that surprised me today."
Hyatt will get another chance to test his skills against Gardner as the Jets and the Giants will once again hold joint practices this summer.
It'll be interesting to see if Gardner sees continued improvement from Hyatt this summer after going against him multiple times over the last couple of years.
Hyatt, by the way, is off to a great start with the Giants this summer as he's reportedly looked sharp during OTAs.
From Giants.com: For the second straight day, the offense made a number of big plays. Russell Wilson and Jalin Hyatt continue to build their chemistry. Their first completion came on a patented Russell Wilson moon ball down the middle of the field. Hyatt got behind the cornerback and leapt to the make the catch. The second completion wasn't as deep but perhaps more impressive, as the two connected on a perfectly timed back-shoulder throw down the right sideline. Wilson put the ball in the perfect spot and Hyatt waited until the last moment to turn his body and snatch the ball out of the air while getting both feet in-bounds. It was a very pretty play.
Hyatt is determined to make an impact this season with the Giants. The biggest thing he needs is an opportunity this fall to make that impact.
