Giants HC issues a challenge to Jalin Hyatt after rookie WR's great day at camp

Former Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt had his best day of training camp (so far) on Friday.  Hyatt, a third-round selection by the New York Giants in the 2023 NFL Draft, received some first-team reps on Friday.  And he made the most of those reps.  Giants beat writer Art Stapleton reported on Friday that […]

Zach Ragan — Tennessee Volunteers News Writer
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Former Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt had his best day of training camp (so far) on Friday. 

Hyatt, a third-round selection by the New York Giants in the 2023 NFL Draft, received some first-team reps on Friday. 

And he made the most of those reps. 

Giants beat writer Art Stapleton reported on Friday that Hyatt made several nice catches on varying routes. 

"It's early, but he's coming on if tonight is any indication," tweeted Stapleton. 

ESPN's Jordan Raanan, who is also a Giants reporter, tweeted that Hyatt's speed is "special" after Friday's practice. 

Giants head coach Brian Daboll spoke to reporters after the evening practice on Friday and he issued a challenge to Hyatt.

Daboll liked what he saw from Hyatt, but he knows it's still early in training camp and the former Vol has to continue to perform at a high level if he wants to earn a key role in 2023.

"It's going to be up to him to go out there and show what he can do," said Daboll. "We have had two days. We had [OTAs], but we've had two days. He has a lot of work ahead of him, just like everybody on the team does. Everybody will earn their role, whatever that may be. … Regardless of the position, when you're a rookie, there's always an adjustment period. I coached receivers early in my career for six years or somewhat. Drafted quite a bit of receivers. They're all different, just like every player. Every position is different. So, the job of the coaching staff is, again, to get these guys as prepared as we can. To get them to buy into the program and do the right thing. Certainly, a lot of stuff to learn. That's why we are here to try and help them the best we can. He's got to put the work in, too."

Daboll is basically telling Hyatt that if he can keep this up and show some consistency as training camp progresses, then he'll have an opportunity to play a lot of football for the Giants as a rookie. It's essentially all on Hyatt. If he can perform, he'll play. Daboll isn't going to make him "wait his turn" just because he's a young wide receiver. Instead, the players that give the team the best chance to win will play, regardless of their experience or age. 

Tennessee fans are certainly well aware of Hyatt's elite work ethic. The South Carolina native famously put in extra work the week after his memorable five touchdown performance against Alabama. That alone shows that Hyatt understands that the work is never done. 

Featured image via Danielle Parhizkaran-USA TODAY Sports

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