Giants Rumors: Cole Beasley Granted Release off Practice Squad After Request

Veteran wide receiver Cole Beasley was reportedly released from the New York Giants' practice squad Friday.

According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, it was a mutual decision, as Beasley asked for his release, and the Giants granted it.

The 34-year-old Beasley was placed on practice squad injured reserve before the start of the 2023 regular season with an undisclosed injury. He was designated to return to practice last week but was never called up from the practice squad or signed to the Giants' active roster.

Beasley already had strong ties to the Giants when he signed with them during the offseason, as he had spent the bulk of the previous four seasons with the Buffalo Bills.

During Beasley's tenure in Buffalo, Giants head coach Brian Daboll was the Bills' offensive coordinator for a period of time, while Giants general manager Joe Schoen was Buffalo's assistant GM.

The shifty slot receiver spent the first seven seasons of his NFL career with the Dallas Cowboys before signing with the Bills ahead of the 2019 season.

Beasley's best season in Dallas came in 2016 when he had 75 receptions for 833 yards and five touchdowns, but he topped it during his second season in Buffalo in 2020 when he recorded a career-high 82 grabs for 967 yards to go along with four touchdowns.

After Beasley finished with 82 receptions for 693 yards and one touchdown in 2021, the Bills released him, and he eventually signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Beasley appeared in just two games for the Bucs before retiring, but he came out of retirement and played in two regular-season games for the Bills last season, registering two catches for 18 yards.

The former SMU standout also had five receptions for 68 yards and his first career postseason touchdown in two playoff games.

All told, Beasley has racked up 556 receptions for 5,744 yards and 34 touchdowns in 153 career regular-season games.

It seemed Beasley was brought in by the Giants to serve as a veteran presence within a relatively inexperienced receiver group, but he was never able to get on the field in a regular-season game.

Now, Beasley will have the opportunity to attempt to catch on elsewhere if he wants to continue his career and play a 12th NFL season in 2023.