New York Giants shouldn’t overlook WR David Sills

David Sills can play, which is why the New York Giants should ultimately utilize him during the upcoming regular season.

There’s no doubt the New York Giants employ a promising group of offensive skill players. Heck, ESPN didn’t rank Big Blue as the league’s second-best roster of players under 25 years old for nothing.

The receiver group is no exception to this, possessing the 23-year-old Darius Slayton, a guy entering his sophomore campaign after impressing much of his rookie year. This unit additionally includes veterans Sterling Shepard and Golden Tate, who’ve both proven to be productive in their own ways.

But looking past the starters, it’s normal for question marks to rise in regard to the reserves. Not many of them are experienced while Corey Coleman has been an injury-prone mystery for much of his career since going in the first round of the 2016 draft.

Curiosity and doubt are excepted when evaluating the backup wideouts, but if there’s one guy that could surpass the rest on the depth chart and shock both coaches and fans ahead of the regular season, it’s the 24-year-old David Sills.

I understand why many don’t realize what he could truly bring to the table as a week-in-week-out player on the active roster. This man was on the Giants practice squad for much of his first year in the league and didn’t notch a single offensive statistic when he was activated.

Nonetheless, there’s no knocking the talent Sills carries when he steps onto a football field.

People seemingly forget that during his days at West Virginia, the Delaware native was one of the top wide receivers in the entire country. His 1,966 receiving yards and 33 touchdowns combined over the course of his final two seasons with the Mountaineers earned him first-team All-American honors in 2017 and first-team All-Big 12 honors in both 2017 and 2018.

His 18 touchdown receptions throughout the former of the two aforementioned campaigns led the NCAA’s Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

So he certainly carries the potential to succeed, he just needs to put it all together with the (hopeful) 16-game slate approaching. A normal four-game preseason without the lingering COVID-19 pandemic would’ve been perfect for him, but the Giants should still be able to decipher his overall role and how he could ultimately assist in the development of this ballclub.

For one, Daniel Jones will need all the weapons he can get his hands on, and Sills’ height could prove to be a factor down near the goal line.

At 6-foot-3, Sills is actually one of the taller receivers within a group that truly lacks significant height. Jones really missed a tall weapon near the end zone throughout his rookie campaign and Sills could attempt to fill that existent gap, which would be huge in terms of the quarterback’s development.

And judging by the prior collegiate statistics we introduced, there’s no denying Sills has a knack for the end zone. Averaging 16.5 touchdown catches per season over the span of two years is nothing to be overlooked, regardless of what he’s done (or hasn’t done) in the pros up to this point.

The Giants additionally don’t employ a concrete starter at the punt returner position. If anything, Big Blue does possess a number of individuals it could utilize for the crucial special teams role, with Sills potentially finding himself in the mix.

He doesn’t have noteworthy experience in the punt return game, having only notched three returns (zero yards) during his time at West Virginia. But with his talent and athleticism, he likely could pick up the position quickly. The Giants can’t afford to waste a guy like this especially with the on-field capabilities he owns, which could lead to him earning punt return reps during the training camp period.

And for what it’s worth, Sills ran a 4.57 40-yard dash at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine, and that’s even after he stumbled.

I’m not saying he should earn significant playing time right away, as a more realistic scenario would be the team initially providing him with special teams reps. But it would be the wrong move if the Giants were to cut him prior to the regular season or even just waive him and place him on the practice squad.

There’s a chance Sills could eventually become one of the team’s top reserve wideouts, and down the road, he should be able to find the necessary opportunities in order to show the organization what he can provide on a weekly basis.