New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton is looking for a new contract, and, as a result, he has not been present at the team’s voluntary offseason workouts.

Giants general manager Joe Schoen isn’t sweating Slayton’s absence, noting that the workouts are exactly what the name says they are: voluntary.

“These are voluntary workouts,” Schoen said, via Kevin Patra of NFL.com. “There’s been players since I’ve been here that haven’t been here, and I understand that. I love Darius. Michael Perrett is his agent. He’s a very good friend of mine. I understand where he’s coming from, and that’s his prerogative to not be here. They are voluntary workouts, so that’s understood.”

Slayton views himself as New York’s No. 1 receiver and thinks he should be paid like it.

The fact that Slayton actually is the Giants’ top wide out at this point says a lot more about Big Blue’s lack of depth at the position than Slayton himself, but he may have a point in thinking he is underpaid.

Slayton is currently on track to earn $2.5 million in base salary in 2024, and last offseason, he signed a two-year, $12 million extension with the club.

The 27-year-old played in every game this past year, hauling in 50 receptions for 770 yards and four touchdowns.

Slayton, who played his collegiate football at Auburn, was selected by New York in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft.

He was a pleasant surprise for the Giants during his rookie campaign, catching 48 passes for 740 yards and eight scores.

Slayton has registered over 700 yards in four of his five NFL seasons, with the exception being 2021, when he missed four games due to injuries.

Is Slayton a No. 1 receiver? No. He is actually probably more of a low-end No. 2 or a high-end No. 3 on genuinely good teams, but there is no question that he has been a dependable pass-catcher in New York ever since entering the league, and he feels he should be compensated appropriately.

Schoen added that he has not yet had any conversations about an extension with Slayton’s representatives.

We’ll see if the Giants can get something done with Darius Slayton in the coming weeks.

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