Giants' offseason moves could lead to a Cam Skattebo breakout in 2026

[ASFN Admin]

The New York Giants headed into the recent offseason, their first under new head coach John Harbaugh, seeking to fortify their rushing attack.

Harbaugh, who coached the Baltimore Ravens for 18 seasons before being fired in January, always prided himself on having an offense that could pound the rock.

The Giants, for one reason or another, came up empty in the running back market. Their top targets in free agency (Travis Etienne Jr., Ken Walker III) and the draft (Jeremiyah Love) slipped away from them. Their only addition to the unit thus far has been undrafted free agent Damon Bankston of New Mexico, who may add more on special teams than on offense.


The winners here are the Giants' current running backs: Cam Skattebo, Tyrone Tracy Jr., and Devin Singletary. They will benefit from Harbaugh's dedication to the run and the team's offseason additions on offense, such as first-round draft pick Francis Mauigoa, a massive tackle the team is moving inside to guard, and free agent Patrick Ricard, a Pro Bowl fullback known for his pancake blocks.

The player who may benefit the most this season is Skattebo, who, as a rookie last season, became something of a folk hero thanks to his powerful rushing style, personality, and versatility. The thought of Skattebo running behind Mauigoa and Ricard is a frightening prospect for opposing defenses.

Patrick Ricard on what blocking for Cam Skattebo will look like:

"It's going to look like a lot of yards and a lot of touchdowns. It's gonna be physicality all over the place. It's gonna just be exactly what the people want to see" pic.twitter.com/gcudpvn81M

— Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) March 12, 2026

The visuals aside, Skattebo, who lost the second half of last season to a dislocated ankle, could be in line for a breakout season statistically if healthy, per fantasy expert Bob Harris of Football Guys.

So, we have Harbaugh's desire to establish the run, efforts to improve the team's run blocking, and a healthy Skattebo. We've had a taste of what that last point means. Even though he only appeared in eight games last season, Skattebo was fantasy gold before he went down.

The fourth-round pick first played a significant offensive role in Week 2 and went on to average 16.0 carries, 4.7 targets, and 96.3 yards while scoring six TDs during his six full games. Skattebo had five-straight games with 90-plus all-purpose yards.

As ESPN's Mike Clay pointed out, Skattebo's 19.2 fantasy points per game during the span would've ranked sixth over the full season.

Harris points out that the Giants' new offensive coordinator, Matt Nagy, will use Skattebo more in the passing game. Last year with Kansas City, Nagy dialed up the sixth-most designed screens to running backs in the NFL.

That will be in addition to his other duties, mainly in the red zone. Last season, in the games he played, Skattebo handled 80 percent of the Giants' rushing attempts inside the five-yard line. That was on an offense that struggled mightily to move the football. This season, there should be more red zone opportunities for the second-year star.

This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Giants' offseason moves could lead to a Cam Skattebo breakout in 2026

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