Calvin Austin could be Giants' first man up in the slot this season
· Yahoo Sports
The New York Giants entered their 2026 training camp with a very crowded wide receiver room and many questions to be answered.
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One of those questions is who will pick up the massive target share that slot receiver Wan'Dale Robinson had last year. Robinson, who left the Giants for the Tennessee Titans in free agency this past March, had 140 targets last season.
Many of those targets likely came due ot the absence of the Giants' No. 1 wideout, Malik Nabers, who went down with a knee injury in October. With Robinson gone, the Giants have loaded up their roster with several candidates to fill the slot receiver role. However, it won't be as prevalent in new head coach John Harbaugh's offense as it was under Brian Daboll and Mike Kafka.
One player has jumped into the early lead for the job. Free agent Calvin Austin III, a 27-year-old who played his first four seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, looks very similar to Robinson in stature and style and appears to be a natural for the role.
"Calvin's had a heck of a camp," Harbaugh said this week. "He runs the routes really well. He gets open. He makes catches. He deserves some attention, no doubt. He's having a good camp so far."
"Austin was the most impressive wide receiver in the spring. That hasn’t carried over to the start of camp, but he’s still the team’s top slot option," writes The Athletic's Dan Duggan. "The slot receiver won’t be featured nearly as much in this offense as it was when Wan’Dale Robinson was racking up 140 targets per season. But even the teams that employ big personnel the most use three-receiver sets when trailing and running two-minute drills. That means Austin will have a role, and he should get the short targets Robinson once received in New York."
Austin, who was signed for one season at $4.5 million, was an active part of the Steelers' offense last year, starting seven games and finishing with 31 catches for 372 yards and three touchdowns on 55 total targets. In his three full seasons in Pittsburgh, Austin has 84 catches for 1,100 yards and eight scores.
Austin has some versatility to his game as well. He has returned 72 punts for 639 yards (an 8.9-yard average), including a 73-yard touchdown return.
The Giants will tinker with their lineup this season as everything is still very new, but expect Austin to play a significant role, especially early on.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Calvin Austin could be Giants' first man up in the slot this season