Giants Receiver Calvin Austin III Carted Off With Knee Injury During Practice

Giants practice Tuesday after receiver Calvin Austin III suffered what appeared to be a significant knee injury and was carted off the field. Austin's knee buckled while running a 1-on-1 in-cut route against cornerback Deonte Banks, and players gathered around him. He is 27 years old and had been working through a solid preseason as a reliable pass-catcher for quarterback Jaxson Dart.

The scene grew somber quickly. According to the New York Post, teammates gathered around Austin as he lay on the field, and team owner John Mara personally walked out to console him before he was carted off, a moment also described by NBC Sports. The Post's Ryan Dunleavy reported the injury occurred during Tuesday's session, with the full extent still unknown.

A Costly Blow to a Prove-It Contract

Austin signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the Giants in March, a deal that, per the same account from the Post, was structured with performance incentives that could push its value up to $4.5 million, as reported by Heavy Sports. He arrived in New York after four seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where across 48 games from 2023 through 2025 he caught 84 passes for 1,100 yards and eight touchdowns, per statistics cited by SFGATE. Austin signed with the Giants specifically to team up with Dart and first-year head coach John Harbaugh, the Post noted.

This is not the first time a lower-body injury has derailed Austin's momentum. He suffered a career-altering Lisfranc foot sprain during his 2022 rookie preseason with the Steelers, an injury that required surgery and sidelined him for his entire draft-year season, according to Draft Sharks. He later played for Pittsburgh before signing with New York.

Harbaugh's Vision for a Versatile Weapon

Harbaugh, the Giants' head coach and former Baltimore Ravens head coach, has praised Austin's flexibility since camp began. The coach said Austin can play all three receiver spots and called him very reliable, someone who runs the right routes and makes catches, according to the Post. That versatility, giving the Giants a receiver who can line up outside or move around the formation, was central to why Austin gives the offense its edge, per the report.

Austin is also an experienced returner, and the Giants had been counting on that skill set to deepen a suddenly crowded receiving corps. The team's depth chart may include Malik Nabers, Darius Slayton, Darnell Mooney, Malachi Fields, Braxton Berrios and Odell Beckham Jr., with the Giants reportedly considering keeping six receivers on the final roster, per the Post's reporting.

A Receiver Room Already in Flux

Austin's injury lands at a delicate moment for New York's receiver group. Top wideout Malik Nabers only just shed his non-contact jersey Monday and rejoined live team drills for the first time since ACL surgery for an injury he suffered in September 2025, according to theScore. Nabers caught 109 passes for 1,204 yards during his standout 2024 rookie campaign before the injury derailed his 2025 season.

With Austin's availability now uncertain, the roster math shifts toward the veterans New York added this summer. Braxton Berrios signed with the Giants in June after recording 140 receptions, 1,360 receiving yards and 3,395 kick and punt return yards across seven NFL seasons, according to Giants.com. The Giants list Berrios as their top option on punts and kickoffs, a role Austin's absence could make even more significant. Odell Beckham Jr., who played under Harbaugh in Baltimore, joined the Giants around the same time, and the two additions had already created intense competition for the bottom spots on the receiving depth chart, according to GMEN HQ. The Giants' spring receiver overhaul also included Odell Beckham Jr..

Second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart will now navigate final roster cuts with less certainty about who lines up alongside Nabers. Before reaching the NFL, Austin began his college career as a walk-on at the University of Memphis, eventually earning a scholarship and two-time first-team All-AAC honors, according to background compiled by Wikipedia. The severity of Tuesday's knee injury remains unknown as the Giants await further evaluation. According to NFL Football Operations, clubs must reduce their Active/Inactive Lists to a maximum of 53 players, a deadline that could affect how the Giants handle Austin's roster status if his injury lingers. NFL Football Operations says clubs may designate two players for return when rosters are reduced to 53 players, providing one potential roster mechanism if Austin is unavailable.