Kenny Golladay Criticizes Reduced Giants Role: 'I Came Here to Play'

New York Giants wide receiver Kenny Golladay, who is in the second year of a four-season, $72 million deal, played just two snaps in a 19-16 win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

Golladay made his displeasure regarding his reduced role clear in a chat with reporters on Wednesday.

"I came here to play," he told reporters. “I’m pretty sure they’re also paying me to play. They want to see more I guess.

"I really don’t agree with it or like it. But I can only control what I can control, and that’s coming to work every day. If I was in the game [vs. the Panthers], I feel like everything that was done in the game I for sure could’ve done. We won at the end of the day, which is good."

ESPN's Jordan Raanan provided more remarks from the ex-Detroit Lion, who signed with Big Blue during the 2021 offseason in free agency.

Golladay has not fared well with the Giants, catching just 37 passes for 521 yards and no touchdowns in 2021. He had two catches for 22 yards in Week 1 versus the Tennessee Titans this year but was unable to get in the box score Sunday in limited action.

It's a new era in East Rutherford, New Jersey as general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll have taken over.

It's clear that Daboll is going to play those he fills puts the Giants in the best position to succeed regardless of one's contract status.

"It’s a continual competition at receiver," Daboll said, via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post.

"We are just going to keep rolling guys [through the lineup] and play the guys we think are going to give us the best chance—and the other guys have to be ready to go as backups."

In Week 1, the Giants rarely used Kadarius Toney, who the team took with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft.

Toney got back on the field more frequently in Week 2, but it appeared to be at the expense of Golladay, whose 77 percent of snaps played led all Giants wideouts in Week 1.

The Giants offense has largely struggled outside the second half of the Titans game, which saw New York score all of its points in a 21-20 win over Tennessee. Four field goals and one touchdown were good enough Sunday in the Panthers win.

Now the Giants will take their 2-0 record back to the Meadowlands as they welcome the Dallas Cowboys into town on Monday evening.