Giants TE Theo Johnson Breaks Silence On Decision to Attend Knicks Game

Johnson seemed annoyed over why his attendance at the Knicks game was such a big deal.

New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

To New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson, his appearance at the New York Knicks game last Friday, just hours after having been declared out of the Giants’ Week 18 regular-season finale, was simply a goodwill act of treating his brother to his first-ever Knicks game by way of courtside seats.

But on social media, Johnson’s presence, made public by the Knicks on the MSG jumbotron, sparked conspiracy theories that the Giants might be tanking in their Week 18 game.

Johnson doesn’t understand why such a fuss was made.  

“They made their medical designation, that was the team’s decision,” he told reporters on Monday as the team cleaned out their lockers ahead of the start of their long offseason. 

“I was dealing with something, I’m still dealing with something. I was not able to play this week.

“I don’t even know why I was discussed,” he added. “I’m not playing, I don’t know why it’s a big deal that I went to a basketball game.”

Why it matters

Nov 23, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; New York Giants tight end Theo Johnson (84) makes a leaping catch over Detroit Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone (34) in the third quarter at Ford Field. | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

For many who took note of the situation in the first place, it’s a big deal due to the optics of a losing team whose quest for the postseason was the first of the 32 NFL clubs to end right about the midway point of the season, and whose season was so bad that it resulted in three coaches, including the head coach, being fired. 

While Johnson’s intentions were pure, to be out and about after being declared out for a game is not a good look for someone who was officially listed as an “illness” during a time of year when the flu is not only running rampant in the area but has also struck several members of the team. 

But for those who viewed it as irresponsibility on behalf of the Giants medical staff, such was not the case. The team later issued a statement clarifying that what Johnson had was a non-contagious issue that posed no risk to him being around people, though they stopped short of disclosing the exact nature of the issue out of respect for Johnson's privacy. 

Johnson, who as of Monday said he was still dealing with his non-contagious infection, seemed annoyed about having to discuss the issue, but this is what happens when a team delivers yet another clunker of a season to a frustrated fan base that has been down this road too many times before. 

“When there’s a narrative that people want to write, the first sign of things, they think that’s what it is,” Johnson said. 

“In reality, there are a lot of things people don’t know about, the media don’t know about, and people just spring on that narrative rather than saying ‘How about I see what’s really going on,’ and I think that’s what happened.”

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