Cam Skattebo bottled up in down night for offense

Giants beat writer Dan Duggan chimed in with “I would be very surprised if [Cam] Skattebo has the same RB1 workload on Sunday that he’s had in the first five games.” Skattebo has put the ball on the ground four times in the first five games. Najee Harris has one in 27 carries and Tyrone Tracy has added two. It sounds like Harris may start to be a significant thorn in the side of Skattebo-reliant managers.

Skattebo rushed for just 12 yards on six carries in the first half as he and the Giants struggled on the ground for most of the day. He would come up with a few big runs in the second half, one of which resulted in a 19-yard gain in overtime as the Giants were attempting to drive into position for a game-winning field goal. Unfortunately for Skattebo, disaster struck later on the drive when he lost a fumble on the Commanders’ 24-yard line, which was recovered by Washington and ended any hopes of a Giants’ victory. Poor late-game clock management by the Commanders made Skattebo’s fumble a little less costly, as the two sides would end Sunday’s game in a tie, but it’s impossible to overstate how big a 4-1 start to the season would be for the Giants, who are playing in a struggling NFC East. Skattebo hasn’t rushed for more than 81 yards in any game this season and has only one touchdown to his name. His reliable volume continues to put him in fringe RB1/RB2 territory, but it’s been a disappointing start for the second-year back. He’ll look to turn things around next week against the Saints.

Skattebo was cleared from the injury report on Friday, so he was never going to miss this game. The good news is that the Giants don’t have any plans to limit his workload. Playing in a rain-soaked matchup with the NFC East rival Commanders, Skattebo is expected to see “an extremely heavy workload”, according to Garafolo.

Skattebo was limited in Wednesday and Thursday’s practices but will be good to go in what he called a “slogfest” on Sunday against the Commanders. With rain and wind forecast for Sunday’s game, the Giants will likely lean heavily on Skattebo, who has rushed for 68-235-1 this season while averaging a subpar 3.5 YPC. Skattebo profiles as a volume-based RB2 against a defense that has been stout against the run out of the gate.

Skattebo was limited for the second day in a row, but he at least ditched his red non-contact jersey. The Giants’ lead running back should be good to go for Week 5 against the Commanders. He sits on the RB1/2 border once again.

Skattebo was participating in a red non-contact jersey today. His limited participation puts him on track to play in Week 5 against the Commanders, but this is obviously worth tracking. The Giants’ starting running back has handled reliably larger workloads this season. Hopefully, he is feeling up to the task again on Sunday.

With the G-Men and Cardinals trading sacks and turnovers in a sloppy but close contest, Skattebo seemed to be in a 50-50 committee with Najee Harris. That is until Harris got “Peanut punched” at the 11:14 mark of the fourth quarter, losing a fumble. Harris was never heard from again as Skattebo received seven touches from that point forward. The G-Men are understandably hunting for some sort of alternative or caddie for their unexplosive, default lead back in Skattebo, but unsurprisingly, Harris is not going to be the answer in that regard. Skattebo will keep hanging around the low-end RB2 ranks heading into Week 5 against the Commanders.

With the Titans struggling to amass more than a handful of first downs, John Harbaugh was more than happy to grind out three yards per carry with his lead back for the better part of four quarters. Skattebo’s only explosive play came on a downfield shot from Jameis Winston. Skattebo got open deep while Winston fled the pocket and the two connected for a 30-yard gain. That alone was enough to make Skattebo the team’s leading receiver. Skattebo’s strong workload will keep him in the RB2 ranks for Week 4 against the Cardinals, even though the offensive environment has taken a massive hit with Jaxson Dart out for the regular season.

Although Skattebo was not targeted in the pass game, his 18 carries handily led the team. Furthermore, presumed backup Tyrone Tracy lost a fumble on one of his two carries, resulting in Devin Singletary taking over primary backup duties for the remainder of the game. Those two variables should keep Skattebo’s weekly volume high after showing no ill effects of the devastating ankle injury suffered in 2025. His touchdown now gives him eight total scores in nine professional appearances despite only six of those being starts, a rate that will keep Skattebo in the weekly borderline RB1 discussion moving forward. Tracy managed just two snaps to Singletary’s 25, leaving Singletary as the primary backup for the moment. It’s possible Najee Harris gets into this discussion after being a healthy scratch in Week 1.

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.