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Giants Now: NFL.com names Bobby Okereke Giants' unsung hero of 2023

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NFL.com names Bobby Okereke Giants' unsung hero of 2023

NFL.com writer Kevin Patra recently chose one "unsung hero" from every team across the league.

As the introduction noted, Patra focused on "players whose contributions WEREN'T noted with Pro Bowl nods or All-Pro selections. Some names you know, some are appreciated by only hardcore fans and some are simply surprise difference-makers who don't get the attention they deserve."

When it came to the Giants, the choice was easy. The honor went to inside linebacker Bobby Okereke.

"It feels almost like cheating to name Okereke here, but the linebacker was snubbed from every awards list, getting shut out of the initial Pro Bowl rosters and All-Pro teams," wrote Patra. "In his first season with Big Blue, Okereke was all over the field, generating 149 total tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, 21 QB pressures, two interceptions, 10 passes defended and four forced fumbles while playing every single defensive snap. Stellar in coverage and stout versus the run, Okereke was the glue for New York's defense in 2023. He will remain a force in 2024 for the team's next defensive coordinator."

View the top photos of inside linebacker Bobby Okereke's first season with the New York Giants.

Okereke was voted a captain prior to the start of his first season with the team, indicative of his leadership within the locker room, and followed that up by putting together a dominant 2023 campaign.

The 27-year-old recorded a team-high 149 total tackles, the third-most in Giants history and the ninth-most in the league this year, while setting new career-highs with four forced fumbles, 2.5 sacks, 11 tackles for loss, six quarterback hits and 10 passes defensed.

But the most impressive part of Okereke's first season with the Giants was his durability. The fifth-year linebacker played every single one of the Giants' 1,228 defensive snaps this season, making him and safety Xavier McKinney the only two players in the NFL to be on the field for every defensive snap.

"You go through and you're always evaluating yourself and so I think our free agent process was good," general manager Joe Schoen said at his season-ending press conference. "We brought in guys that fit our culture, they were good guys, they helped elevate their rooms and Bobby O's one of those guys."

NFL.com wasn't the only media outlet to praise the inside linebacker.

Pro Football Focus chose a "secret superstar" from every team across the league, in which Okereke was the selection for the Giants.

"Okereke proved his value to the Giants in his first season with the team in 2023, leading the team with 149 tackles — the 9th-most in the NFL — and earning a 78.2 overall PFF grade in the process," wrote PFF's Thomas Valentine. "The former Colt was a leader and stepped up when the Giants needed him the most. He did everything from rush the passer, earning 20 pressures, to snagging two interceptions and proving to be reliable in coverage."

View photos of every move made by the Giants during the 2024 cycle.

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