During an injury-plagued and disappointing season for the Giants, Tommy DeVito has emerged as an unexpected star.
AP/EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY With great aspirations of winning a fifth Super Bowl and a chance at a second consecutive postseason trip, the New York Giants had high expectations going into the season.
It makes sense that they spent their bye week discussing the antics of Tommy DeVito, who is suddenly quite famous.
That has been the season’s trajectory.
A brutally difficult schedule and injuries, particularly to the offensive line, destroyed New York’s hopes of catching up to the Eagles and Cowboys in the NFC East and the rest of the NFL elite. The expected joy left the Meadowlands after the Giants won two of their first ten games.
Philadelphia leads the league with a 10-1 record, and New York, with five games remaining in the regular season, is 4-8.
Something positive is emerging from the disappointment. None of the team’s more well-known players, including Kayvon Thibodeaux, Dexter Lawrence, Darren Waller, Daniel Jones, and Saquon Barkley, are on it.
It’s DeVito, the undrafted rookie free agent from New Jersey who signed to the practice squad after being cut at the end of training camp.
His duties included learning new skills and providing an extra hand during workouts. After that, he would drive 20 to 25 minutes to his parents’ home in Cedar Grove, where he would receive homemade meals and have his bed made every day.
It’s difficult not to like this guy, who is a fan favorite due to his carefree attitude. The MetLife Stadium crowd gave him the loudest applause when he was introduced as the Giants’ starting quarterback prior to Sunday’s 10-7 victory over the Patriots.
For DeVito, “it was a lot of fun”—the most recent adventure in a season that has seen injuries to backup Tyrod Taylor (ribs; Oct. 29) and Jones (neck; Oct. 8 and Nov. 8). Unexpectedly, that has made DeVito the starting quarterback.
Not only has DeVito completed the task, but he also guided the Giants to their first winning streak of the season, spanning two games. The Syracuse-bound Illinois player exudes confidence, swaggers, and is well-liked by teammates on both sides of the ball. He is not too big for the game. Also, he has generally avoided turnovers.
Barkley remarked, “I love the whole story line, but Tommy’s my guy.” “I adore that he plays quarterback for the New York Giants, is from New Jersey, and still resides with his parents. I would engage in that entire activity in Madden. I would select an undrafted player or draft one myself, bring him into the team, and turn him into a superstar.
“I’ve been doing that since I was a child, and it’s what I do in my free time. I therefore adore tales of the underdog and similar themes.
DeVito has a 2-1 record in three starts, six touchdown passes, and one interception. In victories over Washington and New England, his quarterback rating exceeded 100. He is the first undrafted rookie in the common-draft era to record a passer rating of 100 or higher in back-to-back starts.
DeVito defeated the Patriots at home for his first victory as a Giant, but it wasn’t his first at MetLife. In high school, he played at the stadium and helped neighboring Don Bosco Prep win a state championship.
“I always try to bring that energy,” stated DeVito. “This game has my utmost respect, but in my opinion, it’s a kid’s game. I therefore make an effort to enjoy myself with it, just as I did when I was five years old and playing in the backyard with my friends, and I try to carry that attitude into practice.
It wasn’t just DeVito’s doing. In the last two games, New York recorded nine takeaways, eight of which came from the defense, which aided their new quarterback.
According to Barkley, the speed of the game and the intricacies involved in getting 11 players on the same page make it difficult for fans to comprehend what it’s like to play in the NFL.
Naturally, when a team wins, their confidence increases, but the onus is on the next man up, Barkley remarked. “It’s your responsibility to go out there and make plays in any circumstance, and DeVito has been doing a great job of that.”
On December 11, the Giants will make their home debut against the 5-6 Packers on a Monday night. It’s unclear if DeVito will stay the starting pitcher. Coach Brian Daboll declined to comment on the quarterback position on Monday, even though Taylor is qualified to return from injured reserve.
DeVito revealed that chicken parm was one of his favorite foods, so for the time being he can relax for the week and enjoy some of those sandwiches—as long as the chicken is thinly sliced and fried crispy—that the neighborhood delicatessens have been sending him.
That’s how the Giants’ season has turned out.
