The Giants spent the days leading up to the NFL trade deadline doing their homework on running backs, but the answers they got apparently didn’t move the needle enough to land a major addition.
ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reported Wednesday morning that New York “called the Tennessee Titans about Tony Pollard and looked into Justice Hill with the Baltimore Ravens before the deadline, according to sources.” The Giants also made a serious push for Jonathan Taylor, offering the Indianapolis Colts a second-round draft pick, a future fifth-rounder and an unknown player. Indianapolis, according to Raanan, wanted “at least a first-round equivalent in any package” for Taylor, and New York eventually backed off.
The Titans, meanwhile, didn’t seem eager to move Pollard while they continue evaluating second-year quarterback Cam Ward. Baltimore also wasn’t acting like a team ready to sell, with the Ravens believing starting quarterback Lamar Jackson could return from his thumb injury in late December.
Raanan also noted that “multiple league sources believe...that Robinson is untouchable as the face of the Falcons.” Atlanta’s stance makes sense after Bijan Robinson signed a three-year, $75M contract extension in August that included $51M guaranteed.
For the Giants, the deadline came and went without a splashy backfield move, which leaves Cam Skattebo right where he was headed anyway: back in the lead role.
Skattebo missed one game with a hamstring injury, but he is expected to return as New York’s primary back when the 5-2-1 Giants host the 2-5-1 Washington Commanders on Thursday night. Speaking Tuesday, he made it clear he doesn’t see the team’s lack of a big-name addition as a threat to his job.
“I’ve been that guy,” Skattebo said Tuesday about remaining the Giants’ RB1 after the club didn’t add a big-name back, per Jordan Dajani of CBS Sports. “Obviously, we had that one-week hiccup where I got in trouble.
That was it. I came back that next week and handled business.
They know what I’m capable of. They know what I can do.”
Before the hamstring injury late in the Giants’ 27-21 overtime win over the Houston Texans on Oct. 25, Skattebo had already put his stamp on the job. He ran for a team-high 124 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries in that game, and New York went into its bye after the win.
“You’ve seen what I can do,” Skattebo added on Tuesday. “When I come out, and I’m ready to play football, I can be one of the most dangerous backs in the league. Simple as that.”
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