The Giants would not be on the precipice of qualifying for the playoffs if not for running back Saquon Barkley and defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence. So, it is fitting that those two young players on Wednesday were named to the Pro Bowl.
Barkley was chosen as a starter and Lawrence as a reserve. The Giants did not have any players chosen for the Pro Bowl last season.
This is Barkley’s second Pro Bowl selection — he made it as a rookie in 2018. This is the first Pro Bowl for Lawrence.
Barkley, 25, is fourth in the NFL in rushing with 1,170 yards and he has nine rushing touchdowns. He also has a team-high 47 receptions for 294 yards.
“What would it mean making the Pro Bowl?” Barkley said before the announcement. “I can’t sit here and be like, ‘Oh, it wouldn’t mean anything,’ because that’s part of the fans. The fans vote and give you an opportunity to get in there and also coaches and players vote. So, it just shows a respect of your peers and the respect of the fans out there. So, I’ll just be more thankful, show more gratitude to those people, because the only way you get in is because of that. Obviously, it’s determined with the play that you do on the football field, but I’ll just be more thankful and show gratitude to the people that voted me in.”
Lawrence, 25, has a team-high and career-high 6.5 sacks. He has more tackles (57) than any other Giants defensive lineman and his 24 quarterback hits are 13 more than the next Giants defender, Kayvon Thibodeaux.
Four Giants are Pro Bowl alternates: kicker Graham Gano (second alternate), left tackle Andrew Thomas and center Jon Feliciano (both third alternates), and Thibodeaux (fourth alternate).
Thibodeaux’s monster performance in last week’s 20-12 victory over the Commanders earned him the NFC Defensive Player of the Week award, the first for the rookie outside linebacker.
Thibodeaux had 12 tackles (three for loss) and made the play of the day with a strip-sack of Taylor Heinicke that he returned 1 yard for a touchdown in the second quarter of the victory.
“I feel like that was a building moment for me and I had a great game,” Thibodeaux said Wednesday after practice. “But I feel like it’s not real until you do it again. We’re getting close to the end of the season, and I’ve just got to keep stacking them and carry this momentum into the playoffs.”
Read Related Also: Musk FIRES several top Twitter executives in his first power move as he formally takes over
Thibodeaux is only the second Giants rookie to win the award. Linebacker Devon Kennard won it in Week 14 of the 2014 season.
“You love recognition,” Thibodeaux said. “When you’re doing the dirty work and you’re working hard, you sacrifice your body to glorify your soul. It definitely does feel good.”
Defensive coordinator Wink Martindale said he would be “very comfortable’’ giving Landon Collins full-time responsibilities on the field in a linebacker role. Collins played 27 snaps last week against the Commanders after residing on the practice squad the previous five games.
The plummet for linebacker Tae Crowder was sudden and swift. He started the first eight games and then was a seldom-used reserve for five games before he was a healthy scratch last week in Washington. Crowder tweeted, “Free Me” after he did not play a snap on defense against the Commanders in Week 13 and on Tuesday he was released.
“I think it was one of those things, it just didn’t work out with the expectation of execution and things that just kept building up and building up,’’ Martindale said.
Crowder cleared waivers and the Giants could sign him to their practice squad. He led the team in missed tackles and the inside linebacker position has been in flux all season.
Barkley, 25, is far too young to have ever seen Franco Harris in action. Barkley and Harris both played at Penn State, though, and the two running backs met and chatted over the years. Harris, a Steelers legend and an NFL Hall of Famer, died on Tuesday at the age of 72.
“I got to have some conversations with him at Penn State,” Barkley said. “Obviously, I saw the news this morning. I just want to pay my respects to his family. Franco was a great guy. The conversations I was able to have with him, him being a legend. Obviously, the amazing play he made for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The stuff that he was able to do at Penn State. It was an honor to meet him. Like I said, sad, sad news and I just want to give my respects to his family.”
There were no changes to the injury report. CB Adoree’ Jackson (knee) and G Shane Lemieux (toe) did not practice. RT Evan Neal (shoulder), DL Leonard Williams (neck), TE Nick Vannett (shoulder) and Thibodeaux (elbow) were limited. … Rookie G Josh Ezeudu is on IR with a neck issue and coach Brian Daboll characterized the injury as “probably more long term than short term.” Daboll added it is not considered to be career-threatening.
