Wayne Gallman spent the majority of the offseason pegged as the odd man out in the New York Giants backfield. From rumors of being a likely cap casualty to serving as trade bait, all signs pointed towards the former Clemson star taking his talents to a new city in 2020.
However, fast forward a few months, and Gallman’s standout training camp performance has not only essentially cemented his placement on the roster, but opened the door for a significant role in the Giants offense moving forward. According to the fourth-year pro, he has new head coach Joe Judge, who notably challenged the running back earlier this summer, to thank for his newfound value.
“I really appreciate Coach Judge calling me out, challenging me. Now I’m going to accept it,” Gallman told the media on Monday.
When asked how it feels to have a coach try to motivate you in the way Judge has, Gallman noted, “I view it just as an opportunity that I just need to take for myself personally. Just to come out really focused and finding something to get better at every day. That’s basically all I took from it.”
Gallman Continues to Dominate Giants Camp
Gallman has been one of Big Blue’s brightest stars during training camp this offseason, culminating in a dominant scrimmage performance last Friday. The former National Champion spearheaded New York’s rushing attack for much of the night, opening things up with a 43-yard touchdown scamper in the first quarter. Gallman also flexed his receiving prowess, hauling in a 5-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Cooper Rush on the opening drive of the third quarter.
Following the conclusion of the scrimmage, Judge sang Gallman’s praises, lauding his play and his ability to respond to criticism.
“He’s a guy who’s really flashed over the course of the entire training camp.” Judge said. “He’s a guy that we’ve challenged and told him we want to see how he responds in competitive situations. Obviously tonight, he had a good night. But he’s a guy that’s shown a lot of potential throughout his career. He’s shown a lot of improvement for us, and we’re happy with the night he had tonight.”
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New Coaching Staff Equals New Life for Gallman
Having a coaching staff in his corner is quite the change of scenery for Gallman, who spent the majority of the 2019 season in Pat Shurmur’s doghouse.
Despite filling in more than admirably for an injured Saquon Barkley back in Week 4 of last season (118 total yards, 2 TDs), injuries and ball security led to Gallman quickly falling out of favor under the old regime. In fact, Gallman spent the latter part of the year as a healthy scratch, while the Giants opted to roll with journeyman Buck Allen behind Barkley.
Yet, instead of sulking in the past, Gallman has set his sights on what he can control moving forward. Although he’d be lying if he said he didn’t use the past transgressions as added motivation.
“That’s in the past now. But looking at that, I can honestly say it got me way more mentally prepared for this challenge, for this season, and just any challenges ahead.” Gallman said. “It made me better as a person. It made me better mentally.”
The Giants added veteran Dion Lewis this offseason with the idea that he would take over as Barkley’s primary backup. While the addition of undrafted free agent Javon Leake was believed to be the final straw that would lead towards Gallman’s demise.
Instead, Leake has been shown the door, while Gallman will likely spend the entirety of 2020 pushing Lewis for significant playing time.
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Giants RB Responds to Joe Judge Calling Him Out