Why 1 Giants defensive player mattered more than the rest vs. Eagles
It’s been a great year of adding under-the-radar talent after the start of the season for the NY Giants. At the top of the list, fans already know about wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins, who has become the No. 1 option for Daniel Jones. Hodgins was released by the Bills and then Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen decided to give him a shot in East Rutherford. Yup, that was a genius decision.
Another move that people may be sleeping on is the addition of inside linebacker Jarrad Davis, who the G-Men signed off of the Detroit Lions practice squad. Davis was a wanted man by Schoen and he wasted zero time in making his presence felt with Big Blue.
Davis looked fantastic for the Giants against the Eagles in Week 18 and we hope more of the same is on the way against the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Wild Card Round on Sunday.
Clearly, Giants identified Davis as someone who could help their D. This wasn't a waiver claim. They sought him out, pushed to sign him off the Lions' practice squad and kept at it.
— Art Stapleton (@art_stapleton) January 9, 2023
Once Davis changed his mind, Giants brought him right in + he played 70/73 snaps a week later. https://t.co/QKpIWtvVhh
NY Giants LB Jarrad Davis is a player to watch in the postseason
Davis ended up seeing extensive playing time in his first career game with the Giants, and boy did he make it count. On the day, the 6-1, 245-pounder posted 10 total tackles and 0.5 sacks. It’s no secret that inside linebacker has been an issue for Wink Martindale and the Giants defense throughout the year.
Linebacker as a whole has been a problem, but thankfully Tae Crowder is no longer suiting up for this. team. He provided fans with countless headaches from start to finish this year, but he’s now with the Pittsburgh Steelers. With Davis in town ready to make plays for this D, it’s a huge step up at LB.
Not only is Davis ia sure tackler, but he’s got a high football IQ as well. This is going to prove to be massive for the Giants the rest of the way. Come Sunday against the Vikings, Minnesota is favored to record a win, but the Giants have other ideas.
They’ll need players on both sides of the ball to play out of their minds to record an upset. Davis is on the list, and this coaching staff clearly has plenty of confidence in him when they send him out onto the field.
