NY Giants inactives: Blake Martinez active, but who replaces Darnay Holmes?
NY Giants linebacker Blake Martinez, and quarterback Daniel Jones are active for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals
The NY Giants’ defense will have one of its most important players, and a highly touted rookie will likely see the most extensive playing time of his young career Sunday afternoon against the Arizona Cardinals in a game that carries massive playoff implications.
Inside linebacker Blake Martinez is officially active for the Giants, after being knocked late from last Sunday’s win over the Seattle Seahawks with a back injury. Meanwhile, rookie defensive back Darnay Holmes is inactive.
Martinez leads the Giants with 111 tackles, and perhaps most importantly, is a steadying leadership force and signal caller of the defense.
Meanwhile, Holmes being down for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals’ prolific wide receiving trio of DeAndre Hopkins, Christian Kirk, and future Hall of Famer Larry FItzgerald, opens the door for second-round pick Xavier McKinney to potentially start but also see extended playing time as the slot corner.
Versatility is one of McKinney’s key attributes, and one of the things that most drew the Giants to choose him out of Alabama back in April.
Giants head coach Joe Judge said this week that he has plenty of confidence in the rookie.
"“Zay is only going to make us better when he gets on the field so long as he performs at practice,” Judge said. “He’s been doing a really good job at practice. His role will keep increasing as we go.”"
As expected, quarterback Daniel Jones is active and will start after missing last week’s game with a right hamstring injury suffered two weeks ago against the CIncinatti Bengals.
Here’s a look at the Giants’ full inactive list for Sunday’s game:
WR Dante Pettis
CB Darnay Holmes
ILB T.J. Brunson
OT Kyle Murphy
OT Jackson Barton
DE R.J. McIntosh
Next. 4 Bold predictions for Giants vs. Cardinals. dark
Matt Lombardo is the site expert for GMenHQ, and writes Between The Hash Marks each Wednesday for FanSided. Follow Matt on Twitter: @MattLombardoNFL.