The New York Giants completed an unlikely comeback in their game with the Washington Commanders on Sunday, scoring two touchdowns in the final 7:20 minutes of regulation to tie the game at 27 and force overtime.
It was something the Giants have never done in their long, illustrious history, but the story could have been better. The Giants had a chance to win the game with two minutes left in overtime.
Instead of kicking the game-winning field goal from the Washington 24-yard line, Big Blue decided to continue running the football to move closer and to kill the clock.
They never got there. On first down, running back Cam Skattebo fumbled the ball, his fourth of the season. Washington recovered, and the Giants' hopes of a win were dashed. The game
would end in a tie.
"Strategically, the idea was to run it twice, and then run it down, get as close as we could, protect the football, which we talked about numerous times, and then run it down and take the knee," head coach John Harbaugh told reporters after the game. "So in case he doesn't make the field goal, there's no time for them to come back and get the field goal. That's the strategy."
Most times, that strategy works, but Skattebo failed to protect the ball, and the Giants are 3-1-1 instead of 4-1 today.
"Skat played a hell of a game, but he's gonna have to learn from that," Harabugh added. "And I think everybody's gotta learn from that. What type of running is called for in that situation? We practice that very situation plenty of times. I expect him to be accountable. I know he will; he already was. And he'll do better next time, so we gotta learn from that.”
Skattebo shouldered the blame for his error.
"I fumbled the ball. We can't have that. I understand that," Skattebo said in his postgame interview. "I’m going to go into the film room and get it fixed. I felt like I had good protection on it. The kid made a hell of a play. I think in that situation what I think I could do differently is try not to get the extra yards because we’re already in a good position and continue to take care of the ball. If I get tackled for a loss at one yard, then I get tackled for a loss at one yard. I’m the player that tries to fight for as many yards as possible for this team. It kind of bit me in the ass there. I got to make sure I protect the ball for this football team. We win that game if I do.”
Too late. The damage may have already been done. He will have to re-prove himself to the coaches and his teammates. Harbaugh may turn to Najee Harris next time to secure a win. Skattebo is going to do everything in his power to keep that from happening.
"I’ve never been the fumble guy," Skattebo went on to say. "I hate to even put that on myself. I don’t even care about that stuff. At the end of the day, I take care of both. Everybody in the locker room, trust me. All 51 other guys, 52 other guys, and all the coaching staff trust me to have the ball there at the end. I got to step up and make the play. Simple as that. I got to hold another ball and make sure that these guys know that when my name is called, that we’re going to be ok.”
Former Giants great and current WFAN Radio host Tiki Barber says the Giants' coaches are the ones that have to get out in front of Skattebo's fumbling issues.
Tiki says Cam Skattebo's mindset has to change if he wants to fix his fumbling issues: pic.twitter.com/H2mccpsMPE
— WFAN Sports Radio (@WFAN660) October 12, 2026
"His mindset has got to change in those moments. And I said this to John Schmeelk on our postgame: Somebody's got to tell him that, right? Whether that's the running back coach Willie Taggart, whether that's John Harbaugh, whether that's Jameis Winston, somebody's got to tell him that. He's still in some ways a rookie," Barber said. "He only played, what, seven games last year? Yeah. So this is his fifth game -- so his 12th game of his career. He's only played 12 games.
"He's gonna make dumb mistakes like that because that's what rookies do. And so somebody's got to remind him: We're in position to win this game. The only thing that matters -- forget getting the extra yard -- the only thing that matters is holding on to the football. And he's aware of this, but this is his fourth fumble. Now, fortunately, this has only been his only one lost, I believe. But this is his fourth fumble of the season, and they're counting on him to be that guy.
"And so if he's gonna be that guy, (that) cannot be allowed."
Barber would know a thing or two about fumbling. When Tom Coughlin took over as head coach of the Giants in 2004, he worked with Barber to cure his fumbling woes by changing the way he holds the football.
"High and tight" was the solution. The results were amazing. Barber went on a run of three seasons where he gained over 2,000 yards from scrimmage. Barber fumbled just nine times over those three years after averaging nine fumbles per year for the previous five seasons.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Tiki Barber: Cam Skattebo has to change mindset to fix fumbling woes
