Dalen Cambre has turned a quiet camp into a real roster conversation for the Giants.
A year ago, the undrafted receiver was part of an unexpected summer competition with Beaux Collins, and both players eventually found their way into the picture because New York’s receiver room was so thin. Collins made the 53-man roster out of camp, while Cambre took longer to break through.
Now the script has flipped. Collins is gone, and Cambre is pushing hard to stick.
Head coach John Harbaugh made it clear on Wednesday that Cambre has been standing out in a big way.
"I see him make a circus catch every single day. And not just that, he's doing all the other things.
He's doing special teams. He knows what he's doing.
He's running great routes. I think he's making a move.
I think he's done a great job, and he's got our attention."
For a player still fighting for his place, that kind of praise matters. Harbaugh didn’t just point to one highlight grab, either. He singled out the full package: special teams, route running, and the kind of daily consistency that gets coaches leaning in.
The Giants also made a roster move Wednesday that fits the moment. The team waived Collins with an injury designation after a medical setback, a brutal turn for the former Fighting Irishman who beat out Cambre for a spot last summer. His exit only sharpens the competition for the final receiver jobs.
There’s still plenty unsettled at the top, too. Malik Nabers remains the alpha, but New York is bringing him along carefully as he returns from last year’s ACL and meniscus injury. The Giants are also expected to lean on the Isaiah Likely experience, using the tight end’s size and speed to help absorb some of the targets left behind by Wan'Dale Robinson.
Darius Slayton and Darnell Mooney appear locked in as the other boundary wideouts. Odell Beckham Jr. has also been one of the more surprising developments of camp, with the 33-year-old working extensive first-team reps while Nabers is limited to individual drills and Slayton and JuJu Smith-Schuster deal with minor injuries. Third-round rookie Malachi Fields and Calvin Austin III look like safe bets to make the roster as well.
That leaves only a couple of openings, and Cambre is making a convincing case for one of them. Reliable hands in team drills plus steady special teams work has given him a path that looks very different from the one he had a year ago.
Back then, the Giants were looking for a reason to keep him. Now, with Collins out and the rest of the receiver room still taking shape, they may have a harder time finding a reason to let him walk.
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