TE · NYG · 34 yrs · exp 11 · Canisius
Stories linked to this player — newest first.
Fullback Patrick Ricard, nicknamed 'Pancake Pat,' is the Giants' highest-paid fullback at $7.63 million over two years. Despite his unique role, which aligns more with blocking than traditional fullback duties, running back Tyrone Tracy believes Ricard will be a valuable asset, stating, 'Me and you are gonna make each other a lot of money.'
Donald Sussman asks: Ed, with the signing of Ricard it looks like the Giants’ offense will be focused on a fullback helping the run game. But all of the roster projections have the Giants 53 man team carrying only a single fullback. My question is what happens if Ricard gets hurt during a game? Do they need to call different plays? Is there another player on the roster that is practicing that position and could fill in? Bellinger and Chatman are gone and I don’t see an obvious backup fullback option. Ed says: Donald, teams very rarely carry a true second fullback. Most don’t even carry one. The Giants carried two when Joe Judge was head coach in 2021, but that was only because Cullen Gillaspia was a key special teamer. He played just four offensive snaps, while Eli Penny handled the fullback duties. Patrick Ricard will be used situationally. He won’t be on the field every time the Giants run the ball. If he gets hurt, the Giants will do what NFL teams do every week. They will adjust. Maybe Chris Manhertz or Theo Johnson would lead block out of the backfield. Maybe they would use two inline tight ends on some plays. Maybe they would use an offensive lineman in the backfield. Maybe, as you indicated, the fullback plays in the game plan would just get scrapped. We have seen very little run game thus far, so we haven’t seen what any contingency plan might be. Bill Michalski asks: Watching the placekicker competition on the Giants this year, I’m wondering how predictive a kicker’s college career is of their success in the NFL. One would think that of all positions it might have the strongest correlation, especially if there are 3+ years of data to demonstrate consistency. What do the numbers say? Is a “placekicking competition” in camp just a way to make bad decisions based on recency bias and a too-small sample? Ed says: Bill, I think we can say that no college player’s career at any position is predictive with foolproof accuracy of succcess at the NFL level. What a player does in college tells you he has a chance, but does not guarantee success. The hashmarks are different in college and the NFL. In some ways, that might make kicking in college harder because of the angles. I also think expectations are higher in the NFL. Look at the Giants’ current kickers. Dominic Zvada made just 68% of his field-goal attempts last season, and 82.8% in his career. Zvada had two good seasons and two so-so seasons. Ben Sauls made 81.3% in college. In the NFL, those percentages make you a journeyman guy bouncing from team to team looking for opportunities. As far as making a decision, what other way would they make it? These guys kick a few times a week beginning in the spring and going through training camp and preseason games. The guy who does the best job will win. There aren’t any All-Pro kickers on the street who would make a competition moot. Eight placekickers were drafted from 2023-2025. The three that were drafted in 2023 — Jake Moody , Chad Ryland , and Anders Carlson — have all played for multiple teams already. Moody and Carlson for three, Ryland for two. Their college careers led teams to draft them, but their performance did not lead those teams to keep them. Bob Donnelly asks: Jamis Winston is one of the better backup QBs in the NFL as well as a great veteran locker room leader and mentor to the developing QB. He is in the last year of his two-year contract and will be a free agent at the conclusion of this season. Should the Giants be looking to extend his contract before the ’26 season and lock him in for a few more years? Ed says: Bob, I don’t know about getting it done before the season starts, but I absolutely believe the Giants should try to keep Winston. He and Dart have a great relationship, and he is a great veteran presence for the entire locker room. This gives me a chance to clarify/correct something I said in Friday’s ‘Valentine’s Views’ podcast . In talking about Winston around the 15:10 mark, I did not m [... truncated ...]
The New York Giants enter the next phase of their off-season program with the start of OTAs this week. The team celebrated the milestone in their calendar by holding a town hall at the Beacon Theater in NYC to preview the 2026 season. Some of the biggest names around the Giants franchise were in attendance, including general manager Joe Schoen, head coach John Harbaugh, quarterback Jaxson Dart, running back Cam Skattebo, edge defenders Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux , and linebacker Tremaine Edmunds . The Giants also had their rookies on the stage as well, with Arvell Reese, guard Francis Mauigoa, and cornerback Colton Hood all there. Harbaugh was introduced to thunderous applause and praised Giants fans as “unbelievable” and shared a story from his decision to join the Giants earlier this year. Harbaugh added that the team needs to win games for their fans. The season starts as a clean slate for everyone, and it doesn’t matter what any of the Giants’ division rivals did a year ago. “All I care about,” Harbaugh said, “is tomorrow’s practice.” That practice is the start of the Giants’ OTAs on Tuesday. “The guys have been working hard,” he said. “They’re ready to start OTAs tomorrow.” Harbaugh believes his team will surprise people this year and wants the team to dictate terms for their opponents on offense in addition to defense. There haven’t been many clues yet as to what the Giants’ offense will look like, but Harbaugh said that they want to be unpredictable on first and second down. “I don’t want to be at the mercy of the (opposing) defense,” he said. “We’ve got to make them decide if it’s run or pass.” He added that he believes the Giants could have the best tight end room in the NFL between Isaiah Likely , Theo Johnson , Chris Manhertz , Thomas Fidone II , and Tanner Conner . According to edge defender Kayvon Thibodeaux, it will all start with the head coach as Harbaugh is always testing the players’ limits. He believes that the pressure to meet and exceed their limits will pay dividends for the team. “This is a perfect year for a miracle story,” Thibodeaux said. Jaxson Dart added that the coach holds himself to the same standards. “He’s working out in the weight room at 4:30 in the morning before we even get there.” Mauigoa later spoke about a different kind of pressure — the pressure of keeping Dart upright . “That’s the type of pressure you want,” he said. “I’d rather it be on me than anybody else.” Second-year running back Cam Skattebo, who took the stage in typical fashion , is probably just as happy to see Mauigoa in Giants blue as Dart is. Skattebo told fans that he’ll be ready to go for Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys . He also added, “Wait until you see me for 17 games.” Skattebo is predicting a big year for himself and the Giants. Not only is he predicting a playoff berth and a “17-plus” game schedule, but he’s set lofty expectations. “it’s going to be 300 carries for over 2,000 yards,” he said. Turning to the defensive side of the ball, Harbaugh seemed almost giddy at how the defense has been transformed from a year ago. He noted that he believes the Giants’ cornerbacks are wildly underrated and the “two safeties” ( Jevon Holland and Tyler Nubin ) have Pro Bowl potential. Likewise, he believes the Giants have four “high level” linebackers in Micah McFadden , Arvell Reese, Tremaine Edmunds, and Jack Kelly, to go with their three starting outside linebackers in Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Abdul Carter . The tenor of the evening, and the feeling among the Giants as their offseason ramps up was probably best summed up by Brian Burns . “First game, prime time. Man y’all be tuned, man, it’s gonna be a scary sight.”
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