Isaiah Likely is suddenly sitting in the middle of a pretty practical Giants problem.
New York already knew Calvin Austin III was going to be a big part of the offense after signing him in free agency in March, but that plan went up in smoke when he suffered a torn ACL and will miss all of 2026. The early word was bad when he was carted off the practice field with what was described as a “serious knee injury,” and the season-ending diagnosis only confirmed the hit the Giants just took.
That leaves the Giants hunting for answers with training camp deep underway and Week 1 closing in fast. The open market is one option.
Waiting for the roster cutdown deadline on Aug. 30 and trying to pick through another team’s leftovers is another. Neither route looks especially appealing, which is why the best answer may already be in the building.
The obvious internal candidates are there. Malik Nabers is recovering from a torn ACL and meniscus, and the question is whether he can work more from the inside.
Third-round rookie Malachi Fields could also get a shot as the big slot some scouts projected. But there’s another possibility that feels a little less conventional and maybe a lot more interesting: using Isaiah Likely as an “F” tight end.
The Giants have already toyed with that idea.
Likely has spent 59.2 percent of his career snaps in the slot, and that number jumped to 73.2 percent last season. In the Giants’ preseason loss to the Minnesota Vikings, four of his six snaps came from the slot, and he was targeted twice. That was before Austin went down, which makes the fit even cleaner now.
The overlap is obvious. Austin and Likely are built very differently, but they can threaten defenses in similar parts of the field.
Both can work outside, but the real damage comes between the numbers. If anything, Likely may be the more dangerous of the two in that area.
His 2025 season with the Baltimore Ravens never really got off the ground after a foot fracture early in camp, and when he returned, his role behind Mark Andrews was limited and inconsistent. Still, the 2022 fourth-round pick has already shown he can be one of the league’s more dynamic receiving tight ends, especially from the slot.
That matters because 43 tight ends logged at least 10 slot targets in 2024, including the playoffs, and Likely was one of them. The connection to head coach John Harbaugh from their Baltimore days also adds to the case that he’s a true weapon, and one the Giants should be ready to lean on now.
In Other News...
Former Giants Target Forced Out As Bigger Concern Now Looms
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Robinsons status now hangs over the Giants as they wait to see whether hell be available for the upcoming game. Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh called the hit "cheap," but for New York the immediate concern is less about the practice dust-up and more about whether one of its key pass-catchers can clear concussion protocol in time to return. [Read more 🡒]
Evan Neal Just Became A Real Giants Roster Decision
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Neal still has plenty to prove, but the roster math has shifted in his favor, and so has the organizational tone around him. He also fits the type of player the coach has tended to favor, which gives him a little more staying power in a group that suddenly looks thinner. The question now is not just whether Neal can reclaim some value as a tackle, but whether the Giants are willing to keep investing a roster spot in the hope that his latest opportunity finally turns into something more. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Suddenly Have A Timely WR Option Worth Watching
The Browns decision to cut Cedric Tillman ahead of their preseason finale is the sort of roster move that can create a ripple well beyond Cleveland. Tillman had already been fighting uphill after a hamstring injury and a concussion slowed his recent run, and the Browns moved on after drafting two wide receivers to fill the future at that spot.
For the Giants, it lands at an interesting time after losing Calvin Austin III to a season-ending injury, leaving them with a need to keep looking for help at receiver. Tillman is at least a name worth monitoring as a possible option, even if nothing official has been reported yet, and these late-August opportunities can sometimes turn into a quick fit for a team that needs depth in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]