The Atlanta Falcons, a bit indirectly, may be the reason the New York Giants made the surprising move to cut wide receiver Darius Slayton.
Slayton’s dismissal by New York was news on Labor Day, a bit of a shock at the start of Week 1.
Slayton isn’t necessarily notable to Falcons fans, but he had put together a lengthy tenure with the Giants that spanned multiple head coaches and quarterbacks. More often than not, he seemed quite reliable and consistent.
Now, though, Slayton is a free agent with less than a week until every team in the NFL will have kicked off its season. It’s a tough spot for him to be in.
And when you look at the Giants depth chart, there’s an obvious place where one of the Falcons’ former players contributed to this move.
How Falcons Were Involved
There’s one name on the depth chart that Falcons fans will know well: Darnell Mooney.
Mooney was one of a handful of veteran wide receivers the Giants signed this offseason in hopes of bolstering their WR depth chart, and Mooney has made the team.
The depth chart in New York includes Malik Nabers, Malachi Fields, Mooney and Odell Beckham Jr. They also kept veteran Braxton Berrios on the practice squad and will probably promote him for Week 1 to the active roster.
Nabers and Fields (a talented rookie) were never going to miss the team.
OBJ wasn’t a sure thing, but the optics of cutting him after bringing him aboard would’ve been even rougher than getting rid of Slayton.
That left Mooney as the swing piece. If he made it, Slayton was in trouble, and Mooney apparently did enough to win a job for himself.
The 28-year old Mooney spent the past two seasons in Atlanta. He was great in 2024, when he caught 64 passes for 992 yards and five touchdowns.
In 2025, Mooney took a step back, but he still caught 32 passes for 443 yards and a score.
There’s reason to believe Mooney still has some juice left in the tank, and the Giants clearly think so.
If the Falcons had kept Mooney this offseason, though, maybe the Giants would still have Slayton. It’s a fascinating domino effect.
Could Falcons Sign Darius Slayton?
There hasn’t been anything linking the Falcons to Slayton, but while we’re here, it’s an interesting question.
The Falcons’ WR depth chart is led by Drake London, but then there are a lot of questions.
Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheaus are the other veterans, along with journeyman Chris Blair.
Then they’ve got the explosive rookie Zachariah Branch.
Slayton would certainly feel like an upgrade to that group, so maybe it’s worth a phone call for the Falcons.
Ex-Falcons WR May Be Reason Giants Cut Darius Slayton