{"id":370170,"date":"2026-10-11T03:46:42","date_gmt":"2026-10-11T03:46:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/370170\/"},"modified":"2026-10-11T03:46:42","modified_gmt":"2026-10-11T03:46:42","slug":"cam-skattebos-calculated-plan-to-punish-opponents-for-later-gains","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/370170\/","title":{"rendered":"Cam Skattebo’s calculated plan to ‘punish’ opponents for later gains"},"content":{"rendered":"

LANDOVER, Md. \u2014 So, is this all a plan?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Is the inability to break off big runs part of a calculated, playing-the-long-game approach by Cam Skattebo?\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, for sure,\u2019\u2019 the second-year running back<\/a> said. \u201cI think early in the year, I kind of like to punish my opponents<\/a>. When game seven, eight, nine comes around, they\u2019re not going to want to do that. That\u2019s when you kind of just get to run past them. When they lower their shoulder and close their eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, I\u2019m just doing me. I obviously could probably make a move here and there, but sometimes it\u2019s better for the team, beating up on the other team, lowering the shoulder. I\u2019ve got to be better, obviously, in the run game. I could definitely make a couple different cuts a game and completely change the outcome. I\u2019m going to continue to work on that and continue to grow.\u2019\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

Skattebo\u2019s longest run this season is 13 yards. He has the most rushing attempts (68) of any player in the NFL without a gain of 15 or more yards. <\/p>\n

\"NewCam Skattebo runs with the ball against linebacker Mack Wilson Sr. during the fourth quarter of the Giants\u2019 Week 4 win over the Cardinals at MetLife Stadium. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

Quinshon Judkins of the Browns is second with 59 carries without a long run. Next for the Giants, Najee Harris\u2019 longest run is 11 yards. <\/p>\n

The Giants are averaging 3.7 yards per rushing attempt. Quarterbacks Jaxson Dart (22 yards) and Jameis Winston (15) have the two longest gains for the Giants in the first four games.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, I mean, we\u2019re just not good enough yet,\u2019\u2019 coach John Harbaugh said. \u201cDefenses are playing us pretty well. As we get better, we\u2019ll probably have more longer runs. Also, if we make them pay a little more with play action, I think that\u2019ll loosen them up a little bit, probably.\u2019\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Commanders are sixth in the NFL in run defense, allowing only 93.9 yards per game. They are 25th in pass defense.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The forecast of heavy rain Sunday could magnify the importance of the running game for both sides.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cLinemen, we like to run the ball,\u2019\u2019 guard Jon Runyan Jr. told The Post. \u201cWe\u2019ll throw the ball if we have to, but we like to establish the run as much as we can. It makes our jobs a little bit easier, it makes it a lot more fun.\u2019\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"NewNCam Skattebo loses his balance but continues running up field during the Giants\u2019 Week 4 win over the Cardinals. USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

Commanders QB Jayden Daniels<\/a> and Malik Nabers were teammates at LSU in 2022 and 2023. Both players have flashed greatness but also vulnerability, as far as debilitating injuries that kept them off the field for long stretches.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThings have been really tough for me and him this past year and ongoing, really,\u2019\u2019 Nabers said. \u201cBut it\u2019s always exciting to see your brother get back on the field after seeing a lot of things go bad. So, I\u2019m excited to see him. I\u2019m excited to see him go back out there and do what I know he\u2019s capable of.\u2019\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGo behind the scenes with Big Blue\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for Inside the Giants by Paul Schwartz, a weekly Sports+ exclusive.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tThank you\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

First-year Commanders defensive coordinator Daronte Jones is a believer in Brian Flores\u2019 system from their time together with the Vikings. <\/p>\n

No team in the league blitzes more than the Vikings, and Jones brought that approach to Washington. <\/p>\n

The Commanders blitz 46 percent of the time in passing situations. Only the Vikings bring pressure more often. This might not bode well for Winston. He has the second-lowest passer rating in the NFL this season against the blitz.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LANDOVER, Md. \u2014 So, is this all a plan?\u00a0 Is the inability to break off big runs part…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":370171,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[3923,9,2683,11,10,22,319],"class_list":["post-370170","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-cam-skattebo","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-giants","tag-new-york-headlines","tag-new-york-news","tag-nfl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=370170"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/370170\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/370171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=370170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=370170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=370170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}