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New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson attended a New York Knicks game Friday night despite being ruled out for the team’s Week 18 game due to an illness that same day.
Johnson, 24, did not play in the Giants’ 34-10 Week 17 win over the Las Vegas Raiders due to an illness and did not practice all week. NFL fans took to social media and wondered if the Giants were holding Johnson out under the guise of an illness to help find a higher draft pick.
Adding fuel to the fire, the second-year tight end reposted a photo of himself on the Madison Square Garden jumbotron and wrote, “I’m not sick.”
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New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84) works out before the game at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on December 21, 2025. (Vincent Carchietta/Imagn Images)
The Giants said Saturday that Johnson has an infection designated as an illness on the injury report, but he does not have the flu or COVID, meaning he can be around others without being a risk. Johnson was first listed on the injury report with an illness last Friday.
“He’s just still got a little bit of an illness and just an infection that we’re just working through. So he’s just kind of trying to clean it up, see where it goes,” interim head coach Mika Kafka said of Johnson, according to The Athletic.
With a loss last week, the Giants would have clinched the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft regardless of Week 18 results. But they blew out the lowly Raiders, meaning Week 18’s results have big draft implications.
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New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84) hits Detroit Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone (34) during the second half at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (IMAGIN)
If the Giants beat the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, they could drop as low as No. 7 in the draft order. If the Giants win and the Cleveland Browns, Tennessee Titans, Arizona Cardinals, New York Jets and Washington Commanders lose, they drop to No. 7.
If the Browns, Titans, Cardinals, Jets and Commanders win their respective games, a Giants win would be less consequential. For example, if the Browns and Titans win and the Cardinals, Jets and Commanders lose, then the Giants would drop to No. 5 with a win over the Cowboys.
If the Giants lose, they still have an outside chance to get the No. 1 pick. For the Giants to get the No. 1 overall pick, they would need the Raiders to win and two of the following four things must happen: the Seattle Seahawks beat the San Francisco 49ers, the Browns beat the Cincinnati Bengals, the Atlanta Falcons beat the New Orleans Saints, or the Chicago Bears defeat the Detroit Lions.
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These four games all affect the team’s strength of schedule compared to the Raiders.
Regardless, if the Giants lose to the Cowboys, the lowest they can pick is No. 2 overall. With a win threatening the team’s chances for a top pick, Johnson’s participation in the Knicks game was notable as fans questioned whether the tight end even had an illness.
Johnson, who has five drops this season, has shown some playmaking ability with 45 catches for 528 yards and five touchdowns in 15 games.
