Once upon a time, the New York Giants strongly considered taking running back Jeremiyah Love with the fifth overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. They ultimately never had the chance, thanks to the Arizona Cardinals, who fully unleashed him before a Week 4 showdown at MetLife Stadium.
The Cardinals landed Love with the No. 3 selection and have made him earn his stripes, almost to a fault. He served as the lesser half of a committee behind veteran Tyler Allgeier — until the team's 36-30 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.
With the training wheels officially off, Love was Arizona's clear-cut bell cow. He posted more touches (26) and scrimmage yards (109) against the 49ers than in his previous two games combined and caught a touchdown. Talk about impeccable heading into a clash with the Giants and their porous run-stopping unit.
Frankly, it feels like everything is falling into place for Love to show New York exactly what they're missing.
Jeremiyah Love has a prime opportunity to torture the Giants
There's enough evidence to suggest that Giants head coach John Harbaugh was highly intrigued by Love's tantalizing skill set and athleticism. The club was reportedly "seriously looking" into adding a top running back this offseason, including the former Notre Dame standout. While there are no regrets about landing stud rookie linebacker Arvell Reese instead, the "what-if" question hangs over their first head-to-head matchup.
Love led the backfield in snaps for the first time in his promising young NFL career, recording nearly twice as many as Allgeier (51 to 30). Only three players, Chubba Hubbard of the Carolina Panthers, Philadelphia Eagles star Saquon Barkley and the Tennessee Titans' Tony Pollard, had a higher rush attempt share (77.8 percent). Short of the near-even route distribution, this was a true takeover, folks — one the G-Men aren't ready for.
It's early, but Big Blue has struggled against the run this season, allowing the third-most adjusted yards before contact per attempt (2.83). They're getting pushed around at the line of scrimmage, which was also a massive issue in 2025. The Cardinals haven't won their trench wars so far, ranking 27th in that stat offensively, though Allgeier largely accounted for the production — or lack thereof.
Allgeier being relegated to a clear backup role alone figures to improve Arizona's outlook on the ground moving forward, especially when facing the Giants. Funneling most of his opportunities to a playmaker of Love's caliber is a double whammy for a vulnerable defense. Assuming these trends continue, Harbaugh will have a front-row seat to what could've been.
Note: Advanced metrics courtesy of Fantasy Points' data suite and data suite 2.0 (subscription required for both).
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