Jason Leach
The New York Giants signed another free agent on Saturday, when they agreed to a one-year deal worth up to $10 million with wide receiver Darnell Mooney.
It was the second receiver this week as they also agreed to a one-year $4.5 million deal with Calvin Austin on Thursday. The addition of Mooney gives New York another dynamic receiver that they sorely needed as Malik Nabers recovers from a torn ACL.
Mooney has played six seasons in the NFL, spending the first four seasons with the Chicago Bears before joining the Atlanta Falcons in 2024. For his career, he has 309 receptions for 4,028 yards with 17 touchdowns.
The 5’11, 180-pound wideout will be reunited with Giants offensive coordinator Matt Nagy, who was the Bears’ head coach during Mooney’s first two seasons in the league. His best season came in 2021 when he had 81 receptions for 1,055 yards and four touchdowns.
He’s averaged at least 13 yards per reception in four of his six seasons, and he will be a welcome target for quarterback Jaxson Dart. Despite shaky quarterback play during his time with the Falcons, he was still productive, catching 96 passes for 1,435 yards and six touchdowns.
Now that he’ll be reunited with Nagy and playing with a better quarterback, he’s poised to have a big season in 2026.
The signing of the 28-year-old Mooney is also a message that the team is sending to veteran wideouts Darius Slayton and Jalin Hyatt. Slayton has been plagued by drops, and Hyatt has been a huge disappointment in his three seasons with Big Blue and has yet to score a touchdown. With Mooney on the roster, Hyatt’s time in New York may be coming to an end.
The way things stand today, Mooney is the WR2 in New York’s offense. Big Blue may still add a wideout with one of its early picks in the NFL Draft.
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