Challenges accepted.
John Harbaugh and his coaching staff vow to "confront everything" when it comes to issues on their team. Lately, those have been the non-negotiables of running the ball and stopping the run.
"Nobody has really taken the bull by the horns," Harbaugh said last Sunday about his running back room, which accounted for just 32 yards on 14 carries in the loss to New Orleans.
Dennard Wilson had even stronger words for his defense.
"I look at guys that don't run to the ball, and I call them traitors because they're traitors to the defense," the defensive coordinator said Thursday after his unit allowed 377 rushing yards and four touchdowns over the previous two games. "At the end of the day, when you have a traitor to the defense, you either have to make adjustments to get them off the field, you have to get somebody else on the field, or they have to correct their behaviors."
The Giants did all three in some capacity this week. The result was a 27-21 overtime victory on Sunday in Houston, which extended their lead in the NFC East as they enter their bye week.
"I think that's exactly the story," Harbaugh said after the game. "To me, that's the point. It tells you who they are. You might have thought before the game, we're going to find out about our guys. We're going to find out about who they are, and we did, and you saw it. They did, they took the bull by the horns, and they got the job done."
Cam Skattebo didn't just take the bull by the horns against the Texans. He was the bull.
A week after not having a single touch on only six snaps, the second-year pro ran for a career-high 124 yards and a touchdown on 17 rushing attempts. He saved the biggest one for the final carry, a career-long 42-yard run on the Giants' second offensive play of overtime.
On the next snap, Devin Singletary rushed 30 yards into the end zone for the walk-off touchdown.
Skattebo, Singletary and Tryone Tracy Jr. each found the end zone as part of a 180-yard outing for the trio. It had been a quartet until last week's starter, Najee Harris, was released earlier this week.
It dwindled to a duo when Tracy suffered a hamstring injury with 5:10 left in the second quarter.
Adding in Jameis Winston's one-yard score, Sunday marked the fifth time ever and first since 1950 that four Giants had a rushing touchdown in the same game.
"I'll tell you what, I can't say enough about 'Motor' (Singletary) and that's on me," Harbaugh said. "That's on me. We were looking for the formula, and Devin wasn't -- he was the odd man out for a number of weeks. Not because of anything he did or didn't do, he just was the odd man out, and that's exactly what I told him. He asked me, 'what can I do?' I said, 'there's nothing you can do, you're doing everything you can do, and your time will come'. It was going to come. And look where it came, right there, and he came through."
They were complemented by a defense that held C.J. Stroud, who entered Week 7 trailing only Matthew Stafford in passing yards, to a season-low 153 yards, while he didn't have much help from his run game. Houston converted just three of 12 third downs, leading to a time of possession disparity of nearly 10 minutes in the Giants' favor.
"Our guys, man, that was a players' win in every way," Harbaugh said. "Blocking, tackling, special teams, covering kicks, pass game, operating, getting stops when we needed stops, fighting back from adversity. But just playing one play at a time, as well as you can, regardless of the last play with no thought for the next play, as hard as you can. As Abdul Carter told the guys at halftime, 'No matter, what empty the tank. No matter what, come back in here with nothing left.' And that's what they did."
View photos from the Week 7 matchup between the Giants and Texans in Houston.
RB Devin Singletary (26)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
Head Coach John Harbaugh, CB Deonte Banks (2)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
RB Devin Singletary (26)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
RB Devin Singletary (26)
OLB Abdul Carter (3)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
QB Jameis Winston (19)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
LB Arvell Reese (52)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
CB Deonte Banks (2)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
DL DJ Reader (98), C Bryan Hudson (60) ,LB Malik Harrison (54)
K Dominic Zvada (34)
ILB Micah McFadden (41)
CB Deonte Banks (2), OLB Abdul Carter (3), S Jason Pinnock (25)
ILB Micah McFadden (41)
QB Jameis Winston (19)
S Tyler Nubin (27)
ILB Micah McFadden (41)
DL DJ Reader (98), C Bryan Hudson (60), LB Malik Harrison (54)
DL DJ Reader (98), C Bryan Hudson (60) ,LB Malik Harrison (54)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
DL DJ Reader (98), C Bryan Hudson (60), LB Malik Harrison (54)
DL DJ Reader (98), C Bryan Hudson (60), LB Malik Harrison (54)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), OL Francis "SiSi" Mauigoa (65)
G Jon Runyan Jr. (76), C Bryan Hudson (60), T Andrew Thomas (78)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Cam Skattebo (44), FB Patrick Ricard (45)
C Bryan Hudson (60), G Jon Runyan Jr. (76), T Andrew Thomas (78)
CB Deonte Banks (2)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), C Bryan Hudson (60), OL Francis "SiSi" Mauigoa (65)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), G Jon Runyan Jr. (76), FB Patrick Ricard (45), OL Francis "SiSi" Mauigoa (65)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malachi Fields (88), TE Isaiah Likely (9)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), OL Francis "SiSi" Mauigoa (65)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
G Jon Runyan Jr. (76), C Bryan Hudson (60), T Andrew Thomas (78)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Cam Skattebo (44), C Bryan Hudson (60), OL Francis "SiSi" Mauigoa (65), T Jermaine Eluemunor (72), G Jon Runyan Jr. (76), QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
WR Malachi Fields (88), C John Michael Schmitz Jr. (61)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
WR Malachi Fields (88), DT Darius Alexander (91), TE Isaiah Likely (9)
OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux (5)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
OLB Abdul Carter (3), ILB Micah McFadden (41), S Ar'Darius Washington (24), DL DJ Reader (98), DL Shelby Harris (93), S Ar'Darius Washington (24), CB Deonte Banks (2)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
OLB Abdul Carter (3), DL DJ Reader (98) ,DL Shelby Harris (93)
CB Deonte Banks (2)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29), QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
T Andrew Thomas (78)
G Jon Runyan Jr. (76)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
K Dominic Zvada (34)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
K Dominic Zvada (34)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
T Andrew Thomas (78)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
K Dominic Zvada (34)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
OLB Abdul Carter (3)
OLB Abdul Carter (3)
OLB Abdul Carter (3)
TE Chris Manhertz (85)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
G Jon Runyan Jr. (76), C Bryan Hudson (60), T Andrew Thomas (78)
WR Darnell Mooney (17), C Bryan Hudson (60), T Andrew Thomas (78)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
WR Darnell Mooney (17)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
C Bryan Hudson (60), G Jon Runyan Jr. (76), T Jermaine Eluemunor (72)
WR Malik Nabers (1), RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29), QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29), RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29), RB Cam Skattebo (44), WR Charlie Jones (89)
Head Coach John Harbaugh, RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
LB Arvell Reese (52)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
ILB Micah McFadden (41)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
QB Jameis Winston (19)
TE Chris Manhertz (85)
K Dominic Zvada (34), P Jordan Stout (15)
K Dominic Zvada (34)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
K Dominic Zvada (34)
K Dominic Zvada (34)
RB Devin Singletary (26)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Devin Singletary (26)
QB Jameis Winston (19)
RB Devin Singletary (26)
QB Jameis Winston (19)
K Dominic Zvada (34), P Jordan Stout (15)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86), WR Malachi Fields (88)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
TE Thomas Fidone II (86)
QB Jameis Winston (19)
DB Elijah Campbell (28)
OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux (5)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), RB Cam Skattebo (44)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
QB Jameis Winston (19),T Andrew Thomas (78)
K Dominic Zvada (34), LS Ben Mann (58)
OL Francis "SiSi" Mauigoa (65)
DL DJ Reader (98)
OL Francis "SiSi" Mauigoa (65)
QB Jameis Winston (19)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
Head Coach John Harbaugh
C Bryan Hudson (60), QB J.J. McCarthy (18), FB Patrick Ricard (45), RB Cam Skattebo (44)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
WR Malik Nabers (1), WR Darnell Mooney (17), RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
CB Paulson Adebo (21)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
WR Malik Nabers (1), WR Darnell Mooney (17), RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
RB Cam Skattebo (44), RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (29)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18), RB Cam Skattebo (44)
S Jason Pinnock (25)
DL Bobby Jamison-Travis (97)
CB Dru Phillips (22), S Jason Pinnock (25)
WR Malik Nabers (1)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
WR Malachi Fields (88)
QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
P Jordan Stout (15)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
P Jordan Stout (15)
OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux (5)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
ILB Micah McFadden (41)
ILB Micah McFadden (41)
LB Arvell Reese (52)
LB Arvell Reese (52)
OLB Abdul Carter (3)
OLB Kayvon Thibodeaux (5)
DL DJ Reader (98), \97, DL Shelby Harris (93)
OLB Abdul Carter (3)
Head Coach John Harbaugh
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Cam Skattebo (44), QB J.J. McCarthy (18)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
DL DJ Reader (98)
DL DJ Reader (98)
CB Nic Jones (31)
RB Cam Skattebo (44)
S Tyler Nubin (27), LB Jack Kelly (51)
RB Devin Singletary (26)
RB Devin Singletary (26)
RB Devin Singletary (26)
The Giants Foundation 5K & Kids Run
Bring your friends, family and neighbors out to run The Giants Foundation 5K Presented by Quest® on Sunday, November 8th and finish in the end zone at MetLife Stadium!
