Former Vols WR Jalin Hyatt comments on tough second season with the Giants after suffering injury against Eagles

Former Tennessee Vols wide receiver Jalin Hyatt is in the middle of a frustrating sophomore season with the New York Giants.

Hyatt, who was selected by the Giants in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft, was hoping for a breakout season in 2024 after catching 23 passes for 373 yards as a rookie last year.

Instead, Hyatt has barely been used by the Giants this fall -- he has just eight targets on the season while playing limited snaps.

And to make matters worse, Hyatt is now dealing with a cracked rib (which he suffered in the Giants' 28-3 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles this past weekend).

Hyatt, however, isn't letting his confidence waver. The South Carolina native told NJ.com on Sunday that he's confident that things will turn around for him soon.

“It’s been quite a bit of adversity,” said Hyatt to NJ.com's Darryl Slater . “But I’ve been through adversity before, and I know how to bounce back from it. Everything looks bad right now, but I’ve been in this situation before in my career playing football. I know I’ll turn it around and be better. I just know how my confidence is, where it’s at. I’m still the most confident guy. It’s going to turn around. That’s one thing I’m not worried about. It will turn around.”

Hyatt has certainly gone through some adversity before. In 2021, when Josh Heupel took over at Tennessee, Hyatt faded to the background as a sophomore as players like Cedric Tillman, Velus Jones Jr, and JaVonta Payton played a larger role in the Vols' offense. Hyatt, though, attacked the following offseason with purposeful intent and he ended up winning the Biletnikoff Award in 2022. He's been down before. And he's worked hard to bounce back. The fact that Hyatt's been through that adversity before and came out stronger should give the former Vol plenty of confidence that things will turn around soon.

It's also worth noting that Hyatt just turned 23 years old last month. This is just the beginning of his NFL story. And sure, it's been a tough start for Hyatt -- much of that is because of the situation he's in with the Giants (the franchise is in disarray at the moment). But Hyatt has shown before that can quickly flip the narrative. And I'd be willing to bet that he'll make his mark in the NFL sooner rather than later.

Related: Unappreciated former Vol returns to Neyland Stadium for Tennessee's win against Alabama