It’s been a brutal couple of months for the New York Giants, who have not won a game since October 6. And although Week 15 against the Baltimore Ravens wasn’t necessarily rock bottom, it was another punishing loss for an overmatched NYG roster.
That was especially the case for second-year quarterback Tommy DeVito. After starting the game last weekend, DeVito left with a concussion after taking several big hits from Ravens defenders.
One of those hits drew an NFL fine from the league office on December 21. According to NFL Football Operations and the gameday accountability page, Ravens defensive lineman Nnamdi Madubuike was penalized $16,883 for a late hit on DeVito that was deemed to be “roughing the passer (body weight).”
Baltimore Banner reporter Jonas Shaffer shared video of this moment on X. In it, DeVito is absolutely pulverized by an unblocked Madubuike — who comes flying up the A-gap (center of the offensive line) after a stunt move fools the Giants blocking unit.
At least for DeVito’s sake, it’s nice to see some retribution from the league after this bone-crunching hit from Madubuike, but this one is on the Big Blue offensive line as much as it is the Ravens pass rusher.
Every week it seems like opposing defenders are bursting into the Giants’ backfield untouched, absolutely obliterating whichever quarterback NYG tosses out there under center. That has to change in 2025, and it’s not the first time that’s been said about a Big Blue offensive line heading into the offseason in recent years.
Tommy DeVito Expected to Back up Drew Lock as Giants QB Rotation Continues
DeVito has cleared concussion protocol ahead of Week 16, but he’ll slot back into the QB2 role behind Drew Lock — who’s also healthy enough to return. That also pushes Tim Boyle into the emergency third QB role once again.
It’s been a constant rotation for the Giants at quarterback ever since they decided to move on from Daniel Jones. And whether it’s been Lock, DeVito or Boyle, there’s been one common denominator and that’s losses.
DeVito probably still had the most allure heading into the 2024 campaign, behind Jones, but it’s become painfully clear that the Giants’ next starting quarterback is not on the current roster. The only question now is how they go about addressing the position.
Should they spend a first-round pick on a top prospect like Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders despite most analysts viewing this as a flawed QB class? Should they pay big money for a free agent like Sam Darnold — who already failed in NYC once? Or should they bring in a short-term bridge quarterback while also taking a flyer on a mid-to-late-round quarterback like Dillon Gabriel or Quinn Ewers?
There are several routes that the Giants can take at the quarterback position in 2025. It goes without saying that this will be the most important decision of the upcoming offseason.
Giants Announce 5 Roster Moves Ahead of Week 16
The Giants have shuffled the bottom of their roster constantly throughout the 2024 campaign, given all the injuries. On December 21, there was more movement ahead of Week 16.
As usual, NYG team reporter Dan Salomone relayed the transactions on X. They were:
- DB Raheem Layne signed to active roster from practice squad.
- LBs Bobby Okereke and Patrick Johnson transferred to injured reserve.
- OLB Boogie Basham and OT Tyre Phillips elevated from practice squad for Week 16.
Okereke is obviously the headliner here. After a signing a four-year, $40 million contract with the Giants in 2023, the veteran linebacker had a much less impactful season in year two — and now that season has officially ended.
Although Okereke is under contract through the end of the 2026 campaign, the Giants could theoretically shed $9 million in cap space in each of the next two seasons by designating him as a post-June 1 cut. This is more likely to occur if a new general manager comes in and elects to clean house on some of the decisions made by Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll.
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NFL Hands Down 5-Figure Fine After Punishing Hit on Giants QB Tommy DeVito