New York Giants veteran edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to finally get his career back on track.
John Harbaugh and Joe Schoen elected to keep Thibodeaux, the 2022 No. 5 pick, rather than trade him to the Saints earlier this year. Not only did the former All-American survive preseason roster cuts, but he also stood to benefit following Brian Burns’ season-ending ACL tear. Did the football overlords feel that Thibodeaux warranted one last chance ahead of free agency?
Assuming that they did, then they’re almost certainly disappointed with how things have turned out. Thibodeaux is still seeking his first tackle for loss, and he managed only a single stop despite playing 87.1 percent of the Giants’ defensive snaps this past weekend.
Whatever analytically driven narratives pop up in the coming days, the reality is that Thibodeaux’s days as a competent defensive starter are officially behind him.
The New York Giants must consider benching or cutting Kayvon Thibodeaux
We cannot stress enough that Thibodeaux has played 216 defensive snaps (roughly 70.1 percent) over five games. Given his experience and raw talent, you’d expect him to be productive.
Thibodeaux’s last truly meaningful play came in Week 1, when he recorded his lone quarterback hit on the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott. He’s made five tackles since moving into the starting lineup in Week 3, and none have been for negative yardage. That’s despite Harbaugh raving about the ex-Oregon standout as a run defender ahead of last Sunday’s tie with the Commanders.
Pro Football Focus feels similarly, and his 78.8 run defense grade against Washington trailed only linebacker Arvell Reese. But he earned only a 21.8 tackling score, easily the worst among Giants defenders; veteran safety Jevon Holland (24.4) was the only other player to post a tackle grade below 41.0 — and, as we’ve repeatedly noted, PFF ratings are notoriously subjective and divisive.
The Giants’ 15 tackles for loss are tied for third-worst league-wide, with only the Colts (13) and Panthers (14) ahead of them. How much of that falls on defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson is up for debate, though it’s worth noting the Titans had 83 TFLs (slightly above the league average of 81) with Wilson as their defensive coordinator last year.
So here you have a pending free agent who cannot tackle and whose coach publicly said he doesn’t trust Thibodeaux to attack the quarterback. Yet the 3-1-1 Giants lead the NFC East and are without Burns, a 2025 second-team All-Pro selection with 71 career sacks.
We’re not denying that Thibodeaux can help on running plays, but the Giants’ days of counting on him as a reliable starter should have ended when the Saints called this past spring.
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