New York Giants waive WR Damion Ratley, sign WR Austin Mack to active roster

The New York Giants waived receiver Damion Ratley and signed undrafted rookie receiver Austin Mack off the practice squad.

The New York Giants have made a number of changes to their active wide receiver unit.

On Tuesday, the team waived Damion Ratley and signed Austin Mack off the practice squad.

Ratley appeared in all five games for the Giants this season and caught four passes for 63 yards. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound wideout simply couldn’t create separation, which has plagued Giants receivers all season with the exception of Darius Slayton.

What was probably Ratley’s undoing was his call for offensive pass interference in a key moment during the Giants’ 37-34 loss to the Cowboys on Sunday. With the Giants trailing 24-20 in the third quarter and facing a 3rd-and-6 from the Cowboys 31-yard line, Daniel Jones connected with a wide-open Slayton on what would’ve been a touchdown. However, Ratley was called for picking cornerback Jourdan Lewis, which allowed Slayton to break free.

*Also a costly pass interference penalty that negated a Darius Slayton touchdown on Sunday. https://t.co/salxssZGVD

— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) October 13, 2020

Receivers coach Tyke Tolbert defended Ratley, saying he was running a route and just so happened to bump into Lewis.

Mack played four years for the Ohio State Buckeyes and totaled 79 receptions for 1,050 yards and six touchdowns. He showed flashes during training camp, but without the benefit of preseason games, was a long shot to make the active roster.

Mack will likely be active for the Giants’ matchup with Washington this Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

In other receiver news for Big Blue, Sterling Shepard might be active for Sunday’s game after missing the last three matchups with turf toe. The plan is to get Shepard on the practice field this week and see how he responds.