New York Giants running back Cam Skattebo stepped back onto the field Saturday and left it feeling more like himself than he had in a long time. The running back said he felt great with the ball in his hands, even as he continues working his way fully back from injury.
“I made some minor errors in my details of what I was doing, but for the most part, I felt good having the ball in my hands,” Skattebo told reporters.
The mistakes were limited to small footwork issues on certain plays, the kind of details he plans to clean up in the film room. Mentally, the injury never entered the picture.
“If it’s not hurting me or if it’s not bothering me, my mind is clear of it. When I went out there on Saturday, I had no feeling or any recollection of injury
in my brain. I was ready to go play football, and adrenaline gets going, so everything kind of goes away," he said.
That clarity did not arrive overnight. The long rehab process brought its share of darker moments, and Skattebo leaned heavily on wide receiver Malik Nabers, who has been navigating his own recovery. The two supported each other through the hardest stretches. As Skattebo regained health first, he was able to help pull Nabers out of a difficult mental space.
“Having your guys around you helping you with that is huge for me and him,” he said. “We were kind of able to work off each other. Malik looks great. He’s coming back, and I’m excited to see him continue to push.”
Head coach John Harbaugh has been careful not to declare Skattebo fully ready, publicly noting that the running back is not yet 100 percent. Skattebo did not push back against that assessment. Touching the ball again for the first time in 10 months is still new, he explained, and there remain occasional kinks and bruises that surface briefly before fading.
“I think he knows that there’s more to me,” Skattebo said. “As time goes on, I’ll feel better and better.”
The early returns have been encouraging. Skattebo is moving the ball, clearing the mental hurdles, and drawing strength from a teammate walking a similar path. The residual work remains, but the foundation is already back under his feet.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Giants' Cam Skattebo, Malik Nabers got each other through 'dark times'
