The NFL moves fast, but the memory of a die-hard football fan moves even faster. When you think about famous New York Giants, your brain instantly goes to the big names: Lawrence Taylor, Phil Simms, Michael Strahan, Eli Manning, Tiki Barber, and the rest of the franchise icons who spent years bleeding, sweating, and crying for Big Blue.
But tucked between the names we can't forget is a Twilight Zone of "wait, that guy actually played for us?" Thanks to the chaos of the salary cap and free agency, a bunch of high-profile stars, former first-rounders, and seasoned veterans have made blink-and-you-missed-it cameos in East Rutherford before quietly vanishing into the night.
Here are 10 since 2000 that you might have forgotten about -- not anymore.
10 players you probably forgot ever wore a Giants uniform
Brandon Marshall, WR
Brandon Marshall might go down as one of the league's most overlooked receivers of all time. He finished his career with 970 receptions, 12,351 yards, and 83 touchdowns. He was a First-Team All-Pro and a six-time Pro Bowler.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound receiver played like it. He was big, physical, strong, and struck fear into opposing defensive backs with a will few others had... just not with Big Blue.
Marshall was 33 when he came to the G-Men, and his lone season in Giants blue was the unofficial end of his NFL career. His highly anticipated arrival ended before it could ever begin. He only played in five games -- an ankle injury ended his season prematurely -- catching 18 passes for 154 yards.
Kurt Warner, QB
Sandwiched right between his 14,447 yards and 102 touchdowns with the Rams (where he won two MVPs) and his 15,843 yards and 100 touchdowns with the Cardinals, Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner took his talents to East Rutherford for a single season.
In nine starts back in 2004, Warner went 5-4, throwing for 2,054 yards and six touchdowns before selflessly stepping aside so the organization could evaluate their future franchise cornerstone: one Eli Manning.
Warner was a great mentor for Manning -- Big Blue's G.Q.O.A.T. confirmed as much later on. As for the one-year rental, he left in 2005 for the desert, where he led the Cards to their first-ever Super Bowl appearance in 2008.
Martellus Bennett, TE
Following their Super Bowl XLVI victory, the Giants faced a crisis at tight end. Both Jake Ballard and Travis Beckum had torn their ACLs during the game, forcing then-general manager Jerry Reese to hit the free-agent market. Reese took a flier on a young, overlooked Martellus Bennett, signing the 25-year-old to a one-year, $2.5 million deal.
Bennett was looking to make a name for himself after being stuck in Jason Witten's shadow in Dallas. He wanted to prove he was more than just a blocking specialist, and Big Blue gave him the runway to redefine his entire career.
The 6-foot-6, 270-pounder turned his one-year audition with the G-Men into a career-saving opportunity. Bennett played all 16 games for the Giants in 2012, catching 55 passes for 626 yards and five scores. New York wanted to re-sign him, but the salary cap be crazy. He turned his breakout season into a long-term, four-year deal with the Chicago Bears in 2013, during which he earned his first and only Pro Bowl appearance.
Kyle Rudolph, TE
Tell me the Giants have been desperate for tight end help without telling me. After spending 10 years -- and earning two Pro Bowls -- with the Minnesota Vikings, Kyle Rudolph took his talents -- and red hair -- to the Big Apple.
While Bennett's time with the G-Men was an ascending milestone that launched the prime of his career, Rudolph’s lone season with the Giants (2021) served as the exact opposite: a descending, final chapter of an otherwise stellar career.
Looking to add a reliable red-zone threat and blocker to pair with the highly athletic but erratic Evan Engram, the Giants handed Rudolph a hefty two-year, $12 million contract. The signing immediately hit a snag during his physical. Doctors discovered a foot injury that required immediate surgery, but they still honored the agreement anyway -- foreshadowing.
He never quite shook the injury. He was clearly hampered by it, losing almost all of the mobility that made him famous in Minnesota. He finished the season with 26 catches for 257 yards and a touchdown. The Giants released Rudolph the following offseason to clear up cap space.
David Carr, QB
After spending five years getting absolutely pulverized as the No. 1 overall pick for the expansion Houston Texans, David Carr finally found some peace, quiet, and a clean jersey in East Rutherford. He signed with the Giants in 2008 to serve as Manning’s backup. Because Eli was a certified ironman who refused to miss a game, Carr's main job description across two separate stints (2008–2009, 2011–2012) was holding a clipboard.
He did manage to get onto the field for 11 games in blue, completing 33 passes for 387 yards and three touchdowns. His absolute finest hour in New York came in a 2009 blowout against the Raiders, where he came off the bench to go a perfect 6-of-6 for 67 yards and a touchdown strike to Hakeem Nicks.
Mostly, he was just a likeable, low-stress locker room presence who provided a veteran sounding board for Eli.
While he never lived up to that monumental top-pick status from his Houston days, his time in North Jersey yielded the ultimate NFL consolation prize. Carr was the backup QB for the 2011 championship squad, meaning he got a shiny Super Bowl ring. Not a bad gig for a guy who spent the first half of his career running for his life.
Geno Smith, QB
Talk about walking straight into a hornet's nest. After four turbulent years with the cross-town Jets, Geno Smith made the short trek across MetLife Stadium to sign a one-year deal with the Giants in 2017.
He likely expected to hold a clipboard quietly behind Manning. Instead, he found himself at the epicenter of one of the most controversial and frustrating moments in modern Giants history.
In late November, with the season completely lost at 2-9, then-head coach Ben McAdoo made the shocking decision to bench No 10. The move snapped Eli's historic, ironman streak of 210 consecutive regular-season starts. Geno was tapped to start Week 13 against the then-Oakland Raiders, instantly making him the target of enormous frustration from an enraged fanbase that wanted McAdoo's head.
To his credit, Smith handled the impossible situation with class. In his lone start in Big Blue, he went 21-of-34 for 212 yards and a touchdown, though two costly fumbles ultimately doomed the G-Men to a 24-17 loss. The backlash to the game was so severe that ownership fired both McAdoo and Reese the very next morning.
Manning was instantly reinstated as the starter, and Geno packed his bags for Seattle the following offseason, leaving behind one of the weirdest, most chaotic single-game cameos in franchise history.
Jonathan Stewart, RB
If you ever want to see a Giants fan experience an immediate involuntary eye twitch, just mention the name Jonathan Stewart. After nine years as a staple of the Carolina Panthers' offense, the veteran running back hit free agency in 2018.
Former Giants general manager Dave Gettleman, who had drafted Stewart in Carolina, decided to bring his favorite power back up I-95, signing the 31-year-old to a two-year, $6.9 million contract with $2.9 million fully guaranteed.
The signing was heavily scrutinized from day dot, especially since Big Blue had just used the No. 2 overall pick on a generational running back named Saquon Barkley. Gettleman insisted Stewart would serve as a valuable mentor and a short-yardage hammer to protect their new rookie star. Instead, Stewart looked like a player who had completely run out of gas, struggling to find any holes behind a disastrous offensive line.
His time in East Rutherford ended almost as soon as it started. Stewart appeared in just three games, carrying the ball a mere 6 times for a whopping total of 17 yards before a foot injury landed him on Injured Reserve. The G-Men declined his option the following offseason, meaning Stewart essentially earned over $170,000 per rushing yard.
He officially retired a few months later, leaving Giants fans with one of the most unforgettable stints of their 102-year history.
Colt McCoy, QB
Every Giants fan remembers exactly where they were on December 6, 2020. Colt "The Colt/Magician" McCoy, a journeyman who signed a modest one-year deal to back up Daniel "Danny Dimes" Jones, suddenly found himself thrust into the starting lineup for a Week 13 matchup against the powerhouse Seattle Seahawks.
Jones had suffered an injury the week prior, leaving the 34-year-old McCoy to lead a 4-7 New York team into a situation where they were major double-digit underdogs.
McCoy did his best "just don't screw it up too much" impression, completing 13-of-22 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown. With a ferocious defense behind him, "The Magician" guided Big Blue to a stunning 17-12 victory, snapping Seattle’s 15-game home winning streak.
While he only started two games -- finishing with 375 passing yards, one touchdown, and one interception -- that magical afternoon in the Pacific Northwest cemented his legacy. He took his talents to Arizona the following offseason, but his brief cameo with New York will forever be remembered for the day a backup shocked the pandemic-stricken world.
Corey Coleman/John Ross, WR
I put them at the bottom because, chances are, most Giants fans aren't overly familiar with either receiver. However, they were both selected in the first round and expected to become featured weapons for their respective teams but flamed out and tried one last hurrah with the G-Men before flaming out of the league entirely.
Corey Coleman was taken 15th overall by the Cleveland Browns in 2016. He lasted two years there before coming to East Rutherford. He played in eight games, catching five passes for 71 yards.
As for John Ross, his record-setting 40 helped him go ninth overall in the 2017 Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals. After four years of trying to stick with the Stripes, Ross made his way to North Jersey, where he caught 11 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown in 10 games. He did pop back up in 2024 with a short stint with the Eagles before officially leaving the league.
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