On Sunday morning, ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reported the Giants would likely make a change to their running back rotation for their Week 6 game against the Saints, including a demotion of Cam Skattebo. Immediately thereafter, Raanan’s colleague, Jeremy Fowler, said Najee Harris would get his first start as a member of the team.
Skattebo, a 2025 fourth-rounder, was one of the Giants’ bright spots as a rookie and started each of New York’s first five games of the current season. Unfortunately, he has fumbled four times in that span, and his lost fumble during the overtime period of the Giants’ Week 5 matchup with the Commanders helped turn a possible win into a tie.
Skattebo’s yards-per-carry average also sits at a meager 3.6 this year, down from his 4.1 rate as a rookie. Still, that 3.6 YPC average is actually tied with Harris for the best mark among the team’s RB contingent, as Tyrone Tracy – who was rumored to be on the roster bubble as of late August – and Devin Singletary have mustered rates of 3.1 and 2.8, respectively (albeit in a limited sample size).
Harris, 28, managed four consecutive 1,000-yard seasons to open his career after the Steelers selected him in the first round of the 2021 draft. He was never a particularly dynamic or efficient runner, though, as he averaged 3.9 yards per carry during his Steel City tenure. Pittsburgh declined his fifth-year option and he scored a one-year, $9.5MM contract with the Chargers in March 2025, but he suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in Week 3 of the ensuing campaign.
The Alabama product drew interest from the Seahawks and Raiders early this offseason. It was then silent on the Harris front for months, and he finally landed a one-year, veteran minimum contract from the Giants in August. Per Raanan, all four RBs are expected to be active on Sunday, and Skattebo will still be in the mix.
In other Giants news, Dan Duggan of The Athletic says he is expecting Jason Pinnock and Ar’Darius Washington to rotate at the safety spot alongside Jevon Holland in Week 6, at least to start the game. Tyler Nubin won the starting job out of training camp but was pulled in favor of Pinnock in Weeks 3 and 4 due to recurring struggles in run defense, and now Nubin has been shelved due to a neck injury.
In Week 5, Pinnock was in the concussion protocol, so Nubin remained in the lineup until he sustained the neck ailment, at which point he was replaced by Washington. Per Duggan, the member of the Pinnock/Washington tandem who plays better on Sunday will have a real chance to claim a permanent starting job.
Finally, former UDFA Bryan Hudson will continue to operate as the Giants’ starting center in Week 6, per Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News. Hudson took over the post from John Michael Schmitz in Week 4, which head coach John Harbaugh initially attributed to the desire for stability since Schmitz had missed a practice to attend the birth of his child. However, this is now looking like a more permanent move, which is a difficult blow for a contract-year player like Schmitz.
