Patrick Ricard didn't need a pile of touches to make his presence felt in the New York Giants' Week 1 win. He needed the offense to stay on the field.
That is the standard the veteran fullback is already trying to set. After New York controlled the second half with long scoring drives, Ricard pointed to a simple goal: Eat the clock and finish with points. He even told punter Jordan Stout beforehand that Stout would not be needed.
The Giants punted once.
"That's what we want to do. We want to be on the field as long as we can, eating up the clock, getting points after every drive," Ricard told reporters on Monday. "I told Jordan Stout, ‘You're not punting this game.’ I was just trying to set the tone early for the season, and we punted once. So,
this game and every game moving forward, we're going to try (to have the) punter not punt."
Week 1 is when an offense still does not know how it will shake out as starters, so the execution was encouraging.
The approach matches how the Giants are using him. Back in Matt Nagy and Greg Roman's scheme, Ricard is no longer limited in the way he was while learning offense early in his career. He can be motioned, shifted, and plugged into different spots. Roman has called him the "spaghetti sauce" of the attack.
Ricard compared the movement to Where's Waldo on Sundays, a mismatch because he is usually bigger than the defender in front of him.
"I'm like the secret sauce to where you put me in different spots to get the advantage, and I'm usually a mismatch of who I'm blocking because I'm usually bigger than them, to where I think it's really an advantage for the offense. And it's a lot of fun," he said. "It's a lot of fun to be in this offense, to be moved around a lot in motion and shift and be in different spots. It's almost like Where's Waldo on Sundays, and it can be a lot for a defense to defend."
One snapshot came when he lined up behind Jaxson Dart and shoved the quarterback for extra yards. Coaches asked him to motion at the snap and push. Dart mostly created the play himself. Ricard said he was almost along for the ride.
And Ricard has no interest in lobbying Matt Nagy or Dart for carries. He spent most of his football life on defense and could not care less if he ever gets the ball. Pancake blocks and sprung runs are what he enjoys. The Giants' skill players are the ones who should have the football.
"For me, it's all about: I want to impose my will on defenses, and I have the most fun when I'm pancaking people, and I'm springing big blocks for my guys to have success, getting lots of points, getting a lot of first downs, winning. I think that's where I get my enjoyment," he said.
Week 1 offered an early look at that physical identity. The next step is repeating it so the punter stays a rare visitor.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Patrick Ricard calls himself the 'secret sauce' of New York Giants' offense
