The New York Giants will have a lot of uncertainty at the running back position entering the 2024 NFL regular season. New York lost running back Saquon Barkley to the Philadelphia Eagles in NFL free agency. The Giants signed Devin Singletary in the offseason to be the starting running back.
He is listed as the top running back on the New York Giants depth chart, but a lot has to be decided during training camp. Even with Barkley departing, the Giants could be okay and other players will need to step up at the position.
New York Giants Second-Year Running Back Eric Gray Potential Breakout Candidate This Season
On the Giants depth chart, Eric Gray is listed as the second running back. Gray last season only rushed for 48 yards on 17 carries and zero touchdowns. He averaged 2.8 yards per rush. Eric Gray also caught six passes for 22 yards receiving and zero touchdowns. He averaged 3.7 yards per catch.
Gray was a fifth-round pick (172nd overall) in the 2023 NFL Draft out of Oklahoma. He will need to play a huge role in the New York Giants offense this season if they are going to be better than what they were a season ago.
John Fennelly of giantswire.usatoday.com listed Eric Gray as one of his six candidates to break out this season for the New York Giants. Fennelly wrote:
“Eric Gray did not get a ton of touches as a rookie last year but with Saquon Barkley residing down the turnpike in Philadelphia these days, he’s destined to see more in 2024. The Giants may have added some other names (Devin Singletary, Tyrone Tracy Jr., Dante Miller) to their rotation but Gray still remains very much in their plans.
Giants beat writers observing OTAs this week have reported that Gray has seen significant first-team snaps this spring. Others are reporting the Giants’ running back pecking order is still very much in flux and is ‘wide open’ according to some heading into camp.”
The fact that Gray is getting some first-team reps goes to show that this will be a running back-by-committee system with Saquon Barkley out the door. The New York Giants could be using three different running backs in a game this season.
Other than Devin Singletary and Eric Gray, rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr., and Jashuan Corbin will look to get play time this season for the New York Giants. However if Eric Gray could be a breakout candidate for the Giants’ offense, this would be another late-round draft pick that general manager Joe Schoen would have nailed.
