EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Giants released wide receiver Darius Slayton on Monday, six days before they open the season against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium. New York announced the move, which also cleared the NFL’s daily transaction wire.
No one else on the roster had been in the building longer. Pat Shurmur was the coach and Dave Gettleman the general manager when the Giants took Slayton in the fifth round out of Auburn in 2019, 171st overall. He caught 48 passes for a team-high 740 yards as a rookie. Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen arrived in 2022 and buried him on the depth chart. He took a pay cut that summer. He led the team in receiving that season anyway.
Darius Slayton On The Release Reports
Release and trade reports followed Slayton through camp. His read on them was that they were not the first and would not be the last, and that he was taking it day by day.
“So, anytime there’s new people, there’s going to be that,” Slayton said. “Just for me, I’ve just been fortunate to be here for four staffs. So, I don’t take it personally. I understand that you have to show and prove yourself whenever there’s new. So, that’s what I plan to do this year.”
Slayton was scheduled to earn $13 million in 2026 under the three-year, $36 million contract he re-signed in March 2025. Pro Football Talk reported that $9.75 million of this year’s money was already guaranteed. The release saves New York roughly $2.5 million.
He made the Giants’ initial 53-man roster on Aug. 31 as one of five wide receivers.
Slayton spent the offseason recovering from sports hernia surgery. He said last week he was not back to full health.
Through 14 games and 12 starts last season, Slayton caught 37 passes on 63 targets for 538 yards and 1 touchdown. The yardage was second-most on the team.
Slayton finishes his Giants career with 296 receptions for 4,435 yards and 22 touchdowns in 106 games. That yardage ranks 12th in franchise history.
New York Giants’ Receiver Room For The Dallas Cowboys Opener
Four wide receivers remain on the active roster. Malik Nabers, Odell Beckham Jr., Darnell Mooney, and rookie third-round pick Malachi Fields are the group New York takes into Sunday night.
Nabers has still not confirmed he will play. He tore an ACL in Week 4 last season and has taken full practices through the summer. Giants coach John Harbaugh said in late August that Nabers was on track for Week 1.
Beckham signed on June 1, caught 3 passes for 53 yards in the preseason finale, and made the 53. His last regular-season game for the Giants was Dec. 2, 2018, a 30-27 overtime win over Chicago at MetLife Stadium.
Mooney signed in free agency this spring after two seasons in Atlanta. He had 443 receiving yards in 2025. Fields went 74th overall in April, a pick New York acquired by trading up with Cleveland.
Kickoff at MetLife Stadium is set for 7:20 p.m. CT Sunday on NBC and Peacock. It is the first regular-season game for Harbaugh in New York. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer went 7-9-1 in his first year and split two meetings with the Giants.
Dallas and New York split the 2025 series. The Cowboys won 40-37 in overtime at AT&T Stadium in Week 2, and New York took the finale at MetLife 34-17. Jaxson Dart accounted for 262 total yards in that game, 230 passing and 32 rushing, with 2 touchdown passes.
Sunday will be the first game called by Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker, who had never held the job before this year. The Giants finished last in the NFC East at 4-13.
Slayton became a free agent on release and can sign anywhere before Week 1.
