Theo Johnson won't play against New Orleans. The Giants ruled the tight end out Friday with a neck injury after he went from limited participation Wednesday and Thursday to missing the final practice.
That removes a complementary option at a particularly inconvenient time. Johnson caught two passes for 35 yards in Sunday's tie at Washington, his best receiving total of the season. He hasn't been a central part of the passing attack, but he had just given New York a little more from the position.
The current depth chart lists Isaiah Likely first, followed by Johnson, Chris Manhertz and Thomas Fidone II. Likely had no game designation on the final report after practicing fully all three days with a foot issue. Losing Johnson should not be confused with losing the lead receiving tight end.
Oct 4, 2026; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84) scores a touchdown against Arizona Cardinals linebacker Mack Wilson Sr. (1) during the third quarter at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Johnson has four catches for 55 yards and a touchdown through five games, with one start. Those totals help explain his smaller role, but they don't make a second available tight end irrelevant to an offense choosing personnel for different situations.
New York can consider other tight ends, more receiver personnel or a different distribution of assignments. None of those choices automatically replaces what Johnson would have been asked to do, and the Giants haven't announced the replacement snap allocation. A depth-chart order is not a complete Sunday plan.
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The Friday injury report also ruled out cornerback Colton Hood and safety Tyler Nubin. Offensive tackles Andrew Thomas and Jermaine Eluemunor returned as limited participants but remained questionable.
Those tackle designations matter when choosing how to help the protection. An extra tight end can be part of a protection plan, but changing the personnel also changes the receiving options. Simply assigning Johnson's work to Likely could take a productive receiver away from the routes New York wants him running.
The sensible next step is to distribute the missing work by assignment, rather than assume one player inherits all of it. The Giants have until the game-day roster decision to establish the available combinations. Johnson's contribution was modest, but the staff now has one fewer combination to choose from.
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