Skattebo exits practice after hard hit on Friday

Speaking on Up and Adams, Skattebo said he told himself in college that he would retire if he suffered a major injury. It’s a surprising comment on its face, but football fans shouldn’t be shocked that a young player questioned his choice of profession after suffering a gruesome ankle injury in his first season. Skattebo ultimately attacked rehab and returned faster than most people expected. He was a full-go early in the offseason and is now ready for Week 1.

It’s worth noting that Cam Skattebo continues to be the first running back up in practice, but it sounds like the Giants could have a vision for Harris, who signed with the team on a one-year, minimum-salary deal, per Raanan. Harris is returning from a torn Achilles that ended his 2025 season in Week 3, but there’s plenty of room for him to earn snaps behind Skattebo once he gets up to speed. A blown pass-blocking assignment by Tyrone Tracy in the team’s first preseason game against the Vikings raised immediate questions about whether or not the Giants will trust Tracy in pass-blocking situations this season, and Harris has proven to be a capable pass-blocker in the past. At this point, it’s hard to imagine Harris having any standalone fantasy value in a healthy Giants backfield, but he could be worth a handcuff to Skattebo in deeper leagues based on these latest reports.

Coming off a serious leg injury that ended his 2025 season in November, Skattebo has fared well in offseason practices and training camp, claiming he’s fully healed from his leg break. For now he’s listed as a co-RB1 alongside Tracy, who was up and down as the Giants’ lead back last season after Skattebo went down to injury. Devin Singletary listed as the lone RB2 likely means Tracy would get first crack at lead back duties if Skattebo misses any time in 2026. Tracy will be worth rostering in most 12-team formats.

It’s a sneaky way that Tracy could cut into Cam Skattebo’s workload. Duggan went as far as to say it “figures to be a time share, with Skattebo the 1-A and Tracy the 1-B,” and while we wouldn’t go quite that far with Skattebo being the lead back in most other drills and being anointed the starter for most of camp, it does cut Skattebo’s value just a smidge.

Skattebo left practice early on Friday after taking a hard hit from LB Arvell Reese. Skattebo spent the rest of today’s practice on the Giants’ sideline, stretching his left leg. Per The Athletic’s Dan Duggan, it was it was his hamstring. That makes sense. Some of you might remember that Skattebo suffered a season-ending right ankle dislocation and fibula fracture last year. Harbaugh said that Skattebo is still “working back into football shape.” Putting two and two together, it sounds like Skattebo may have suffered a hamstring strain today. The injury might cost him a few practices, and it is worth noting that Harbaugh tends to present optimistic recovery timelines, but Skattebo should have ample time to rehab and ramp up before the regular season. Hopefully, he can take preseason reps if that was meant to be part of his ankle-related rehab plan.

According to Hughes, Skattebo is “the first up in almost every running drill,” and he has also handled the majority of carries in practice. While it’s certainly an encouraging sign for Skattebo’s usage, Hughes also notes that the preferred options in the passing game are Tyrone Tracy and Devin Singletary. If the Giants were to dial back Skattebo’s role in the receiving game, it could deal a bit of a blow to his fantasy stock. He was on a 17-game pace to catch 51 passes last season, and his work in the passing game made up 43.7 percent of his fantasy scoring in PPR leagues last year. Skattebo’s role as an early-down grinder and goal-line back should be more than enough to satisfy fantasy managers this season, but a reduced role in the passing game would put a bit of a cap on his ceiling.

Duggan buried this thought in a lengthy social media post last Wednesday. He says Giants RBs Cam Skattebo and Tyrone Tracy “are fine,” but notes that the front office was “open to upgrading to a premier back,” referring to Cardinals rookie RB Jeremiyah Love. Duggan “could see a vet signing,” like free agent RB Najee Harris (Achilles) once he is healthy, “or a trade.” A veteran like Harris would slide into the RB3 role, and might occasionally steal enough touches to hurt Skattebo’s weekly ceiling outcomes. A premier back would have a much larger impact, but a player like that would obviously be much harder to acquire at this point. That outcome seems far less likely at this point, but it wouldn’t be surprising if the Giants added another name to the backfield.

Skattebo was already taking 11-on-11 reps before the end of the early offseason and did a backflip at Brian Burns’ celebrity softball game, while ESPN’s Jordan Raanan believes he will be a full participant when training camp begins. Skattebo’s contact-heavy style opens up some fantasy football questions about his longevity, especially given his injury last year, but he played to a low-end RB1 ranking most weeks under Brian Daboll after taking over the lead role. Currently heading off the board towards the back of the top 50 picks by ADP and bolstered by his head coach’s confidence, it sure seems like the Giants run game is trending towards being Skattebo-forward again this year.

It has always seemed likely that Skattebo will be ready for training camp, plus or minus an off-day here or there to help with recovery, but this pretty much guarantees it. Skattebo escaped the offseason as a big fantasy football winner since the Giants didn’t add a real competitor for the starting job. It remains to be seen if he can hold off Tyrone Tracy for a full-time role, but he should at least start the year as the lead of a committee.

In an 11-second video posted to X by ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, Skattebo can be seen running a route down the left sideline before hauling in a long pass. The second-year running back is working his way back from a fractured ankle he suffered in Week 8 of last season, and looked to be running at or close to full speed in the clip. Speaking last month, Skattebo said he expects to be healthy for Week 1, and he appears to be trending in that direction. We’ll get a better sense of his availability when training camp starts, but if Skattebo can avoid the PUP list at the start of camp, we can safely assume he’ll be all systems go, barring any setbacks. Skattebo projects as an RB2 in what is expected to be a run-heavy offense in John Harbaugh’s first season.