WR Isaiah Hodgins claimed off waivers by New York Giants

The New York Giants have claimed wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins off waivers from the Buffalo Bills, the team announced on Wednesday afternoon.

The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Hodgins was a sixth-round pick by the Bills in 2020, when Giants GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll were working for the team.

Hodgins played in only one game last season with no receptions. He played in two games this season with four receptions for 41 yards. Hodgins has spent most of his three seasons in Buffalo on the practice squad.

The Bills released Hodgins on Tuesday.

Claiming Hodgins fills the final spot on the Giants’ 53-man roster. Claiming Hodgins, though, does give the Giants seven wide receivers, a heavy number, on the active roster.

The Giants were thought to be in the market for wide receiver help before the Tuesday, Nov. 1 trade deadline, but no deals materialized. Perhaps Hodgins, with whom Daboll is obviously familiar as the former offensive coordinator in Buffalo, can provide an incremental upgrade.

Matt Warren of SB Nation’s Buffalo Rumblings offers this assessment of Hodgins:

“Hodgins was an offseason darling who always showed up in minicamp and training camp and had good preseason moments but couldn’t make the leap to the active roster for whatever reason. Some receivers were better on special teams or faster or didn’t have the “it” factor or whatever, he just never found the place. In Buffalo he was gonna have to play teams, but Jale Kumerow was better there and Isaiah McKenzie had quicks and returner ability. I think in an earlier version of the Bills like the Giants, he is going to get his shot and he fits where they are.

“If I was a Giants fan, I’d be optimistic about what he brings to the table.”

Here is an NFL.com scouting report on Hodgins prior to the 2020 NFL Draft:

Potential inside/outside target with below average speed but outstanding ball skills, instincts and will to make the contested catch. Scouts must balance his impressive pass-catching talent against issues eluding press-man and NFL-caliber coverage. Hodgins is astutely aware of coverage location in all areas of the field and adjusts accordingly. He’s clearly more skilled than opponents when the ball is in the air, but the catch space will be tighter and the challenges more fierce as a pro. He needs to refine his route-running and may need to be moved and stacked in bunch sets for release freedom, but Hodgins has the ability to see the field in multiple-wideout sets as a middle-round pick.

Also, here is Hodgins toasting Darnay Holmes for a touchdown: