Cam Skattebo On Giants’ Failed Jonathan Taylor Pursuit: ‘you’ve Seen What I Can Do’

So much for Jonathan Taylor replacing Cam Skattebo as the Giants’ No. 1 running back.

Taylor is staying with the Colts, who decided to not deal him to the Giants (or anyone else) ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline.

The Giants ultimately wound up doing nothing at the deadline, as prices rose across the NFL — something John Harbaugh, the team’s coach and football czar, acknowledged Tuesday as the deadline approached.

“You don’t want to make a bad deal,” Harbaugh said. “You make a bad deal, that doesn’t make you better. That makes you worse. Sometimes, the best deal is the deal that you don’t make.

“We’re willing to pay a price to make our team better. But it’s got to be something that really makes our team better. It’s got to be worth it. I would want a player that we love.”

Harbaugh — who wants a sure-thing No. 1 back — yanked his Taylor offer of a second- and a fifth-round draft pick. He didn’t love Taylor enough to offer more.

Taylor, a South Jersey high school legend, won’t get his homecoming — though he could still be traded in the offseason, since he is under contract through 2028.

In the Giants’ locker room Tuesday, Skattebo reacted to Taylor not being traded.

“You’ve seen what I can do,” he said. “When I come out and I’m ready to play football, I can be one of the most dangerous backs in the league. Simple as that.”

He said he understood why Giants fans ­— who lionized him during his encouraging rookie year last season — wanted Taylor. But Skattebo, who is entering just his 16th NFL game, also expressed confidence in himself.

“I would be skeptical, too, if my running back was going for 60 yards a game and not really exploding out,” he said. “But I’m still getting comfortable, man. This is like my 13th game in the league.

“I’m not even through a full football season yet. I’m still learning how to play football in this league. You obviously can see I’m getting more comfortable as I play the game.”

As for the Taylor trade talks, Skattebo said, “Whether they were thinking about it or not, it doesn’t bother me. I know I’m here, I’m healthy and I’m ready to play football. That’s it.”

(The Giants — led by Harbaugh — absolutely were thinking seriously about trading for Taylor. It just didn’t work out, since the Colts wanted more.)

So what does Skattebo think about retaining his No. 1 back job?

“I’ve been that guy,” he said. “Obviously, we had that one-week hiccup where I got in trouble [and got benched against the Saints]. That was it. I came back that next week and handled business. They know what I’m capable of. They know what I can do.”

Skattebo is coming off last season’s serious ankle injury. He recently said he was still working his way back from that. So where is he now?

“The ankle injury is the ankle injury,” he said. “You deal with it for the next 10 years. It’s something that’s going to always be there. It’s something that you have scars in your mental from. But once you do the rehab and you’re continuously working on it, that’s the big key.

“Probably the last three to four games, that’s when I’ve really started to feel more comfortable and the ankle has really not given me any issues at all. I’ve been able to go into the games feeling 100% me.”

Now, with nine games left in Harbaugh’s magical first season, the Taylor-less Giants need Skattebo at his best.

The Giants are 5-2-1 and in first place in the NFC East entering Thursday night’s home game against the Commanders. Harbaugh’s team just won in Philadelphia for the first time since 2013, but Skattebo missed that game with a hamstring injury he suffered in the pre-bye week win at Houston.

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Skattebo is expected to be ready for Thursday. He was close to being able to play at the Eagles. Against the Commanders, he will try to build on his strong showing in Houston, where he ran 17 times for 124 yards and a touchdown during a thrilling overtime victory.

After Skattebo ran for 81 yards and a touchdown in Week 1 against Dallas, his production declined over the next four games, as he struggled with fumbling and scored zero touchdowns.

He ran for just 36, 60, 58 and 59 yards in those games. Then he was benched for the loss to the Saints, right before the Houston trip.

Skattebo did have 100 total yards in Week 3 against the Titans (because he posted 40 receiving yards that day). But overall, the Giants were not getting enough from their rushing attack prior to the Houston game.

During their 19-11 win at the Eagles, they needed to rely on Devin Singletary as their No. 1 back. (Tyrone Tracy, the No. 2 back, is on injured reserve with a hamstring issue.) The Giants managed 80 yards on 31 rushes in Philadelphia. Singletary had just 31 yards on 21 carries.

With Skattebo back in the mix — and Taylor staying in Indianapolis — can the Giants’ rushing game get back on track against the Commanders?

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