Elijah Chatman is not supposed to be in this position. The defensive tackle out of SMU already pulled off the improbable once, going from undrafted rookie camp invite to 53-man roster. But this time around, the odds are different. The defensive line room is deeper, the margin for error is tighter, and the coaching staff is getting as creative as possible with keeping the right guys on the roster.
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If Saturday night was any indication, they’ve made up their mind on this one. Chatman lined up at fullback in a live preseason game against the Jets, and it was absolutely electric. It didn't take two seconds before big No. 94 ran through the offensive line looking for contact. It was a little old school, a little absurd, and one of the most objectively awesome things you’ll see all year.
Funny enough, head coach Brian Daboll told reporters after the game that every single time Chatman has played fullback, whether in practice or in a game, he’s broken his facemask. That’s not just a football guy stat. That tells you everything you need to know about how serious he takes each rep.
Elijah Chatman will make Giants 53-man roster by playing both sides of the ball
There’s still a lot to sort through, but the picture is getting clearer by the day. The G-Men don’t usually carry a traditional fullback. They didn’t in 2024, and the offense showed no signs of adding one heading into this summer.
So what did they do? They turned to one of their most physically gifted players on the roster and asked him to bring the same explosion he shows on the line of scrimmage to the backfield.
It didn’t come out of nowhere. Chatman logged 27 snaps at fullback during his final year at SMU, and before that, he rushed for more than 1,600 yards as a high school running back. It’s not some novelty act. It just works. And as Dabs said himself, Chatman’s speed, power, and explosion make him the exact type of guy who can handle both roles.
Chatman is bulldozing his way to a roster spot, one facemask and helpless defender at a time. The Giants still have plenty of decisions to make, but this one doesn’t feel like all that much of a decision anymore. When a guy can wreck offensive lines and moonlight as a fullback in the same game, teams stop calling him a camp body and start calling him a team member.