Giants pick Penn State tight end Theo Johnson in fourth round of 2024 NFL Draft

The Giants continued drafting for need on Saturday, picking Penn State tight end Theo Johnson at No. 107 overall of the fourth round.

Top tight end Darren Waller is considering retirement, so Giants GM Joe Schoen has to plan for life without him. That meant adding Johnson, 23, a 6-foot-6, 259-pound Canadian, who made 34 catches for 341 yards and seven touchdowns for the Nittany Lions last season.

He is a good blocker with size and speed and average hands.

“I give defenses a real problem,” said Johnson, who looks up to great tight ends like Tony Gonzalez and George Kittle. “I’m capable of being a tight end you can’t take off the field.”

Johnson said he know Brian Daboll’s son, Giants offensive assistant Christian Daboll, from their time together at Penn State. And he liked working with Giants QB coach Shea Tierney at the Senior Bowl.

He said Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, a fellow Penn State product, texted him congratulations when the Giants picked him Saturday. Johnson admitted it would have been nice to play together in New York and maybe they will be teammates down the road, but for now he’s “right where I’m supposed to be.”

Johnson follows Schoen’s selections of LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers in the first round, Minnesota safety Tyler Nubin in the second and Kentucky corner Andru Phillips in the third.

All of them are intended to plug holes in a roster that needs a lot of help to compete in 2024, although the Giants haven’t landed a quarterback after trying to trade up for North Carolina’s Drake Maye in the first round.

Johnson is the third of Schoen’s four draft picks this weekend with an arrest in his past, along with Nabers and Phillips.

He was charged with two misdemeanors — one for simple assault, one for criminal mischief — stemming from a Feb. 2023 incident at a fraternity house, according to The Athletic.

Johnson was ordered to complete a six-month, pre-trial intervention program for first-time offenders.

The Giants have two picks remaining in the draft: No. 166 in the fifth round and No. 183 in the sixth.

This is a developing story, check back for details