Darius Slayton agrees to pay cut and reworked Giants contract, source says
Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton makes a catch during practice on Aug. 25, 2022. Credit: Noah K. Murray
Joe Schoen said last week Darius Slayton would likely be on the Giants' roster for Week 1.
On Wednesday, the two sides made that a certainty.
The wide receiver agreed to a pay cut and a reworked final year of his contract to remain with the team, a source told Newsday. The new numbers leave Slayton earning the league minimum for 2022 ($965,000) rather than the $2.54 million he was due to make thanks to performance escalators throughout his career, giving Slayton a chance to earn back some of that money with incentives this season and saving the Giants nearly $1.6 million against the salary cap.
After being excused from practice on Tuesday, Slayton is expected to be on the field with the team Wednesday.
The move comes a day after the Giants restructured the contract of defensive lineman Leonard Williams, converting a large portion of his salary into a signing bonus and adding a void year to his deal. Unlike Slayton, Williams did not lose out on any money he was due to earn and was basically paid for the 2022 season up front. The two reworked contracts, though, save the Giants around $13.5 million against the cap and put the team at around $8.3 million below the league-mandated maximum. The deadline for all teams to be under the 2022 salary cap is Wednesday afternoon.
Slayton’s new base salary is more in line with his current role on the team. He is listed as the fifth outside receiver on the unofficial depth chart. The Giants were involved with calls about potentially trading Slayton in recent weeks and had he not agreed to the pay cut, he likely would have been released.
In his three years with the Giants, Slayton has led the team in receiving yards twice with 740 as a rookie in 2019 and 751 in 2020. Last year his production dropped to 339 yards with the additions of Kenny Golladay and Kadarius Toney. While he is the last receiver listed on that unofficial depth chart, Slayton has experience and a rapport with quarterback Daniel Jones and given the unproven physical viabilities of oft-injured Golladay and Toney, plus the return of Sterling Shepard from a torn Achilles, he gives the Giants value as a backup who could step into a larger role if needed.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
