Are the New York Giants and Jets WRs Good Enough for 2026?

Both the New York Giants and Jets face a similar predicament. Are their current WRs good enough for 2026? Yes and no.

Prepare for the intense sports debate that only sibling rivalry can conjure. Seesaw Sports, where Dan Salem and Todd Salem throw down on the NFL, MLB, NBA and more. Only on BuzzChomp. Two brothers from New York yell, scream and debate sports.

As another ugly season winds down for the New York Giants and New York Jets, we must look to the future. The 2026 season is now on the horizon, so what of the current offenses? Are they good enough? This is our New York football hour for NFL week 16 and both teams are looking to the future, no matter how grey or gloomy it may be.

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We are faced with the truth that none of us want to accept. The only way through is through, so let’s feel everything and bite the proverbial bullets. Literally everyone is asking, outsiders are laughing or averting their eyes, but someone must step up to the podium and fire back. Tough questions require hard answers.

 

New York Giants and Jets: NFL Week 16

 

 

1. Will the receiving corps be good enough for the New York Giants in 2026?

Todd Salem: We know Jaxson Dart will have some major help back at wide receiver in 2026 when Malik Nabers returns. Nabers, when healthy, is one of the premiere talents in the entire league. His presence alone makes New York formidable through the air.

However, a one-man show in the passing game is hard to sustain successfully. For the Giants, they were hoping (and dished out a contract reflecting) that Darius Slayton would be the lynchpin number two guy, and he just hasn’t. He’s been really bad this season, given more targets and pressure. Instead, Wan’Dale Robinson was the one who developed.

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But since timing doesn’t always work out, Robinson will be a free agent at the end of the season and may be too expensive for the Giants to retain considering he is coming off of his best season as a pro.

A top two of Nabers and Slayton is, in my opinion, not good enough, especially with no clear third option yet on the roster. Theo Johnson is an okay, high upside tight end, and Tyrone Tracy is a good back out of the backfield, but teams need more than 1.5 legitimate wide receivers. 

If that means using their first-round pick on a receiver who is worthy, I’m not opposed. In fact, I’d rather do that than overpay to retain Robinson or another, similar receiver through free agency. The trick is that New York is currently positioned to have the very first pick in the draft, and with no WR valuable enough to garner that selection, they would need to create a trade to move back and still slot high enough to grab one of the better WRs. It’s not impossible but adds another layer of difficulty.

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Watching Dart sling the ball over and over to Slayton in the loss to Washington just hammered home that this unit is not going to be balanced enough next season. Just look at the Seattle Seahawks for a blueprint. Jaxon Smith-Njigba turned into arguably the best receiver in the sport this year, but Seattle still added veteran Cooper Kupp last offseason AND added Rashid Shaheed at the trade deadline. Nabers will need help; it’s just a matter of where that help comes from.

Dan Salem: The Giants absolutely need more wide receivers, because without two or three proven guys, opposing defenses can simply gameplan to eliminate Nabers. Game over. New York does not have a dominating run game, which would alleviate the need for a strong group of receivers top to bottom. They have a complimentary run game, but I’ll add an alternative to your receiving solution.

More playmakers on offense is the key for New York in 2026, so the Giants can also go two other ways to improve Dart’s weapons. They can add a true receiving threat at tight end, which may or may not exist in the draft. Or they can add a running back who is great catching passes as well as running the ball. Currently their running backs are good but not great at pass catching, so there’s room for improvement.

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If the Giants sink money into any position in free agency, it must be the offensive line. It’s a broken record and an area they seem to be addressing every offseason, but New York can fix many of the offense’s issues with improved line play. More time to throw means even a second rate receiver like Slayton has more time to get open and a higher likelihood of being relevant in the passing game.

As Dart matures, he will hopefully go through his progressions quicker, make quicker decisions, and ultimately force his receivers into higher percentage situations. Build a wall for Dart up front and get him one more weapon. The Giants are close and closer than they appear, but until they hire a head coach all things are unknown.

 

 

 

2. Will the receiving corps be good enough for the New York Jets in 2026?

Todd Salem: Obviously, the Jets have one major flaw in comparison to the Giants when trying to parse how good the receivers need to be for the team to find success: the Jets also need to find a quarterback.

Be that as it may, let’s parse! Garrett Wilson, currently on IR, should return as the number-one option in ’26. It would have seemed wild to question this even just a year ago, but is he good enough to be that top guy?

Despite playing in just 10 games thus far, Wilson leads the team in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. It was a low bar. But taking missed time out of it, ever since his breakout rookie year, he seems to have stagnated, or at least not blossomed into an elite WR1. It doesn’t help to have the cavalcade of quarterbacks the Jets have deemed worthy to lead the offense. But better receivers than Wilson have still managed to produce with poor QBs throwing them the ball. I was hoping Wilson would have been able to elevate his QB rather than have the QB position make Wilson worse.

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Outside of Wilson, though, there are some signs of life. Adonai Mitchell, part of the acquisition in the Sauce Gardner trade, has seen heavy targets during his brief time as a Jet. The former second-round pick has oodles of talent. As does the Jets’ own second-rounder, tight end Mason Taylor. Taylor missed the Jaguars game with an injury, but they surely hope he returns soon to get more reps before the season is out.

The rest of the receivers have been strictly castoffs from other clubs: John Metchie, Josh Reynolds, Allen Lazard, Isaiah Williams. None of them are building blocks.

Breece Hall, a great receiver in his own right, is a free agent after the season, so the team will be looking for another skill position piece at running back. The question is whether they need to add a difference-maker at wide receiver as well, and I’m actually leaning no. 

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I still believe in Wilson as a WR1 and have liked what I’ve seen thus far from Mitchell. The passing game will need to add depth pieces and have Taylor develop into the prospect we thought he was coming out of college, but every team needs its top guys to develop. The plan for roster construction doesn’t need to invest premiere assets into WR in my opinion. There is enough in-house if they simply bolster the deeper options.

Dan Salem: We agree here as well, because the Jets have simply done Wilson dirty by not having anyone around him worthy of a defense’s attention. Wilson is a great player, but he’s not big and strong enough to consistently beat double and triple coverage. Mitchell solves this issue, because he has already proven he can be very good. With Wilson on the field as well, teams must take both guys seriously. Add in a healthy Taylor and suddenly the Jets have three receiving options, not including their running back.

New York would be smart to add a third receiver, likely a slot guy, because none of the fill-ins have stuck. But the real question is whether Isaiah Davis is the answer at running back, because the Jets are unlikely to pay Breece Hall’s asking price. The answer is currently maybe. Keeping Hall creates a complete picture, quarterback aside. I’m not sure he wants to stay and I don’t think the Jets want to spend big to keep him. So we must move on.

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It feels naive to say the core of the Jets offense is in place, but I actually feel that way for the first time in a decade. Even undrafted QB Brady Cook is moving the ball and scoring in this offense, against far superior competition nonetheless. Cook is earning himself a roster spot and proving this offense is close. Since New York loves to draft defense and has done a good job of it historically, this bodes well for the team in 2026.

 

 

Meet our Sports Writers:

Dan Salem is Lead Editor and Co-owner of BuzzChomp. He’s an award winning Actor, Director and Producer. Visit M Square Productions for his film work, or get lost in his old-school comedy on Pillow Talk TV. You can follow him on X, TikTok and Instagram. His latest film ‘Alone’ is now on Amazon.

Todd Salem is a Staff Writer and Contributing Editor at BuzzChomp. He’s also a champion of fantasy football and fantasy baseball, dominating leagues for over two decades. Comment below on his unfiltered opinions.

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