The football gods took rookie running back Cam Skattebo away from Giants fans too soon in 2025. But you know what they say about setbacks -- they make for great comebacks
And there might not be a single player on the roster who could rally the Big Blue fan base around a bounce-back like Skatt. When he's not running into telephone poles or headbutting his franchise quarterback, the soon-to-be 24-year-old is fighting for every extra yard in between the lines.
The former Arizona State standout suffered a truly gruesome, season-ending injury in Week 8 against the Philadelphia Eagles -- dislocating his ankle, fracturing his tibia, and rupturing his deltoid ligament. Fortunately, that’s all behind him now. He’s expected to make a full recovery and be ready for Week 1.
New head coach John Harbaugh is going to love having Skatt healthy and back around the facility. He brings an energy only the Tasmanian Devil can rival. But it’s just as important that Harbs and the Giants nail the rest of the staff, and that starts with the offensive coordinator spot.
While Todd Monken waits on the Cleveland Browns to make a head coaching decision, his former -- and possibly future -- boss is reportedly looking at another Baltimore assistant who could hold the keys to unlocking Skattebo. And that would be Ravens running backs coach Willie Taggart.
Willie Taggart emerges as Giants target for offensive coordinator
As reported by ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, the G-Men have requested to interview Taggart for their open OC role.
The 49-year-old worked with Harbaugh for the past three seasons in Maryland, putting up gargantuan rushing numbers. The Flock led the league with 8,512 yards on the ground during that span. For reference, Big Blue had 5,852. That's a 2,660-yard difference.
The former Oregon and Florida State head coach knows the Harbaughs well... like, really well.
Nobody understands the Harbaugh Way quite like Taggart. From being recruited by John and Jim to play quarterback for their father, Jack, at Western Kentucky, to later coaching under all three Harbaughs -- Jack at WKU, Jim at Stanford, and John with the Ravens -- he has lived in their football universe for decades.
And if there’s one thing Harbs loves more than special teams play, it’s a strong ground game. That’s what makes Taggart a strong OC candidate and an ideal coach for Skattebo, in particular. Whoever the G-Men bring in, the hire better be the right hire. These are the formative years for several up-and-coming offensive stars. Throwing any setbacks at them unnecessarily is only going to perpetuate this cycle of misery.
Jaxson Dart is no Lamar Jackson, and Skattebo is no Derrick Henry, but the ground game will be massively important to the offense. Bringing in a guy with the rushing chops Taggart has could unlock something special in East Rutherford.
Taggart's done an excellent job with the Ravens' run game; maybe he can bring that success to the Giants if he's hired.