It is not exactly a rebellion but the aftermath of the 20-20 tie with the Commanders prompted unrest from Giants players unhappy with their usage, or lack thereof.
Inside linebacker Tae Crowder, a starter the first eight games before seeing a reduction in Week 10, was on the field for 26 snaps — all on special teams. He did not have one snap on defense. Afterward, he took to Twitter to post, “Free Me.”
Monday morning, second-year cornerback Rodarius Williams also used Twitter to vent his frustration after he was the only player in uniform, other than backup quarterback Tyrod Taylor, not to get a single snap. Williams posted, “Ima jus sleep this off Bcus this can’t be real rn” with a broken heart emoji. He soon after tweeted, “I’m trying stay afloat it’s hard no lie I jus swallowed the hardest pill of my life!”
Asked how he will handle this, coach Brian Daboll said, “Private conversations.”
Crowder’s lack of playing time was not surprising, but Williams seemed to be on the upswing. On Thanksgiving, he played 50 of the 67 snaps on defense and got his first NFL interception when he picked off Dak Prescott. Yet he was benched the next game, with practice squad activation Zyon Gilbert used for 56 of the 85 snaps on defense in his NFL debut and Nick McCloud playing all 85 snaps.
Tae Crowder was among the unhappy Giants players after Sunday’s tie with the Commanders.Getty Images“Each week, we sit down, we talk — the defensive guys and I, and we figure out who we think we want in there for that particular week,” Daboll said. “The guys that were in there this week were the guys we wanted in there.”
Daboll said it is too early in the week to know if CB Adoree’ Jackson (knee) or safety Xavier McKinney (hand) will be available this week. Daboll said it is not an option for McKinney to wrap the fractured fingers on his left hand in a club to allow him to play. … DT Leonard Williams, who entered the game with a neck issue and played only 35 snaps before departing when he exacerbated the problem, is “sore,” according to Daboll.
Daboll responded quickly to a question on whether he was considering taking over the play-calling from offensive coordinator Mike Kafka.
“No, I have a lot of confidence in Mike Kafka,” Daboll said.
The Giants are 22nd in the league in scoring at 22.4 points a game. Kafka is in his first year calling plays, coming to the Giants after serving as the Chiefs’ quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator.
Overtime pay goes to safety Julian Love. He played all 85 snaps on defense and also played 20 snaps on special teams for a team-high 105 total snaps.
“Kind of crazy,” said Love, who added he felt normal soreness while lifting one day after the game.
It comes as no surprise that Daboll announced that Love will receive a “vet day” on Wednesday, meaning he will be held out of practice. Daboll said Dexter Lawrence (85 total snaps) and right guard Mike Glowinski (all 66 snaps on offense, despite being added to the injury report a day earlier with a back issue) will also get the day off.
So much for easing Daniel Bellinger back into the action. The rookie tight end missed the previous four games after undergoing eye surgery and so his lower body was ready to roll. And then some. He was on the field for 64 of the 66 snaps on offense and caught all five passes thrown to him, but for only 24 yards.
“Took a couple of big hits, didn’t feel anything, which is good,” Bellinger said.
