New York Giants running back Cam Skattebo was flagged for unnecessary roughness during Sunday’s Week 7 game against the Houston Texans after lowering his helmet and running directly into a defender.
The play came in the first quarter when Skattebo took a handoff from quarterback J.J. McCarthy, found a running lane, lowered his helmet and collided with Texans safety M.J. Stewart. Officials threw a flag, citing Skattebo for lowering his helmet into the hit.
The call drew confusion, since helmet-to-helmet penalties in the NFL are typically reserved for defenders who lead with their helmet against a defenseless offensive player, not the other way around. Giants head coach John Harbaugh appeared puzzled by the penalty as well.
The Giants and Texans were tied 14-14 at halftime in a closely contested matchup.
Return to the Backfield
Skattebo had drawn scrutiny heading into the game after recording no carries in Week 6 against the New Orleans Saints, a decision that raised questions about whether the Giants were sending him a message. Harbaugh denied that Skattebo had been benched.
“It wasn’t by design for him not to carry the ball,” Harbaugh said. “Just when he was in there, we didn’t call any runs. You’re not thinking about which back is in the game and how many runs they’re getting. It’s we were going to give them all an equal shot, give them a chance, see who got a hot hand maybe, see who could get going with it. We weren’t planning on being down by 24, that’s for sure.”
Skattebo has also faced concern over ball security issues, though not enough, apparently, to keep him out of the lineup. He was back in the offense in full for Week 7.
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