Giants rookie Tyrone Tracy makes the most of his start
It still is early in the Giants’ transition to a post-Saquon Barkley Era running game, but Sunday brought a plot twist.
Tyrone Tracy, a rookie fifth-round draft pick out of Purdue, saw an opening that afternoon and ran through it — decisively.
With No. 1 back Devin Singletary sidelined by a groin injury against the Seahawks in Seattle, Tracy rushed 18 times for 129 yards in a 29-20 victory.
Not bad for a guy whose NFL totals entering the day were 12 carries for 29 yards.
It was the most rushing yards for a Giants rookie since Dec. 9, 2018, when a guy named Barkley gained 179 against Washington.
Tracy, who often lined up at wide receiver at Iowa and later transferred to Purdue, was particularly proud of showing his versatility as a runner.
“I feel like my game is very unique,” he said after the game. “I can run like a receiver, but then I can also do the inside game as well. That kind of gets lost in translation just because I’m a receiver coming to running back.
“The big question coming into the league was, ‘Can he run inside zone?’ Obviously, I can run the outside stuff, I can do the open space. But they didn’t know if I could do it in between the tackles. I think today I answered that.”
It will be interesting to see where this goes from here.
Singletary could be back for Sunday night’s game against the Bengals — or not. Eric Gray could get more work after rushing only four times for 4 yards Sunday — including a fumble in the end zone that Seattle returned 102 yards for a score.
Or maybe the Giants have stumbled upon an unsung gem in someone who could be a keeper for the long term.
“Tracy is a baller,” tackle Jermaine Eluemunor said. “Tracy said he was just going to go out there and do his thing, and that’s what he did.
“His patience in the backfield, the way he just hit the hole and created something out of nothing, is ridiculous. Once he gets more comfortable in the system, sky’s the limit.”
Tracy admitted having had some nervousness before the game, but it was short-lived.
“For me personally, when you get out there after that first snap, the butterflies need to go away,” he said. “You have to stay focused, understand the game plan, and rely on your fundamentals and technique.”
The Giants totaled 175 rushing yards a week after managing only 26 in a 20-15 loss to the Cowboys. Tracy had four carries for 2 yards in that game.
Then came Sunday, when Tracy not only filled in ably for Singletary but Darius Slayton had eight catches for 122 yards and a touchdown with rookie sensation Malik Nabers sidelined by a concussion.
It was the first time since Dec. 15, 2019, that the Giants had a 100-yard receiver and 100-yard rusher in the same game. That came against the Dolphins in a 36-20 victory in Eli Manning’s last career game, when Sterling Shepard had 111 receiving yards and Barkley rushed for 112.
“He’s a hard guy to tackle,” quarterback Daniel Jones said of Tracy. “Hit the hole hard and then making guys miss at the second level on a couple of those runs. I thought he had a really good game.”
In his day-after video news conference on Monday, coach Brian Daboll did not offer any insights into whether Tracy could see his role expand, or into whether Singletary (or Nabers) might return this week.
He did praise Tracy’s work ethic and progress.
“He’s a smart player,” Daboll said. “I think [running backs coach] Joel Thomas has done a really good job with him . . . He’s improved since he’s been here. He played well [Sunday], but 10 guys around him played well, too.”
Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.
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