Theo Johnson does not need a mountain of catches to matter for the Giants against Washington. He just needs a few more chances where the field shrinks and the red zone gets crowded.
Johnson has only two receptions this season, but one of them was a touchdown against Arizona last Sunday. That alone should be enough for New York to consider giving him a larger slice of the finishing-game work, especially in two-tight-end looks that could stress Washington in a different way.
The bigger role belongs to Isaiah Likely, and nothing about this matchup calls for turning that into a debate. The cleaner move is to keep Likely in place and add Johnson as a targeted red-zone threat, rather than asking the offense to choose between them.
There’s a case for it beyond the box score. Johnson had 45 catches for 528 yards and five touchdowns in 2025.
This year, through four games, his two grabs have gone for 20 yards and a score. He also posted 72 receiving yards in the last meeting with Washington.
That doesn’t guarantee anything on Sunday, but it does give the Giants a reason to test the idea.
Washington’s injury report adds another layer. The Commanders ruled out safeties Percy Butler, Nick Cross and Tyler Owens on Friday. That makes it worth asking whether New York can create useful receiving matchups by putting both tight ends on the field and forcing the defense to sort it out.
Likely practiced fully Friday and has no game-status designation. He has 22 catches for 190 yards and two touchdowns this season, including seven receptions for 66 yards against Arizona. Johnson getting a few designed chances does not have to come at Likely’s expense.
The real appeal is what the Giants can give Jameis Winston near the goal line. With both tight ends deployed, New York could create a second receiving option without tipping its hand as a pass-heavy package. The point would be to make both players viable targets, not just line Johnson up to block and hope for the best.
A short play-action route or a designed option near the end zone would make sense as something to explore. That said, those are possibilities for the staff to weigh, not confirmed pieces of Sunday’s plan. How well they work would come down to protection, spacing and Washington’s coverage.
No one should be pretending Johnson is suddenly about to become a volume receiver. A touchdown on one of two catches does not mean he needs eight targets. What the Giants could reasonably ask for is a few intentional opportunities, not a wholesale redesign of the passing game.
And even with the safeties out, two tight ends won’t automatically solve the matchup. Washington can adjust its coverage, lean on other personnel or get to Winston before routes fully develop. New York still has to find a real edge instead of assuming the injury report hands it one.
If wider formations give the quarterback better reads or cleaner protection, those may still be the better answer. And if the two-tight-end look clogs the route tree or breaks down up front, there’s no reason to force it just because it sounded good before kickoff.
Still, Johnson has already shown he can catch the ball, and he just found the end zone in a Giants win. The offense can build on that without diminishing Likely’s role. Against a division opponent missing three safeties, a small red-zone tweak feels like a worthwhile swing before New York settles for the same old distribution again.
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