Who Should I Start? Brandin Cooks or Darius Slayton

Wednesday, March 18, 6:22 AM

New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton briefly entered this offseason as the team's No. 2 receiver with Wan'Dale Robinson departing in free agency. However, the pass-catching room has quickly become crowded after new head coach John Harbaugh brought in his hand-picked class of free agents. The Giants signed Darnell Mooney and Calvin Austin III, both of whom had very disappointing 2025 seasons but are candidates for positive regression in a new system in 2026. Specifically, Mooney's style of making plays downfield and winning in coverage makes him a threat to steal plenty of Slayton's snaps and targets. The Giants also brought in tight end Isaiah Likely, pairing him with Theo Johnson, who was already ascending into a larger role. Training camp will offer more insight into what the pecking order looks like in New York, but for now, managers should be at least a little concerned that Slayton could fall behind any combination of Malik Nabers, Mooney, Austin, Likely, and Johnson. He's worth holding in deeper dynasty leagues in case he does end up as Jaxson Dart's No. 2 target, but with such a wide range of outcomes, he can be left on waivers in shallower formats or redraft leagues.