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Brian Daboll has the New York Giants on a three-game winning streak, but he can’t please everybody. The head coach made a decision that left wide receiver Parris Campbell “shocked” and “hurt” ahead of the 24-22 win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 14.
Campbell was inactive against the Packers, the first time the 26-year-old has been a healthy scratch in his career. The wideout told Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News he “definitely was shocked. Shoot, I was more so just hurt more than anything . . . hurt that I know what I put into it each and every week. And to be inactive for the first time in my career was definitely hurtful, was definitely shocking. A lot of different emotions going on, for sure.”
While Campbell was grateful to the Giants for letting him know about his diminished status with 24 hours notice, “that doesn’t take any hurt away or any pain or frustration away from it, but I definitely respected that.”
Daboll explained his decision “at a Tuesday press conference that Campbell’s scratch ‘was really more’ about a need to have more numbers on defense than his injury,” per Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper.
Campbell finding himself sacrificed in the name of defensive resources is just one more sign the former Indianapolis Colts’ pass-catcher’s time with the Giants won’t last beyond this season.
Parris Campbell’s Time With the Giants Hasn’t Worked Out
Campbell looked like a free-agency bargain when the Giants gave him a one-year contract worth $4.7 million. He was supposed to be a dual-threat runner and receiver expected to thrive from the slot.
Things haven’t worked out that way, with Campbell named a potential trade candidate as early as October. The lukewarm response to Campbell’s start to life with Big Blue was only natural after he snagged just 16 receptions for a mere 85 yards across his first five games.
Since then, Campbell has struggled to see the field on offense. Instead, he’s had to be content trying to make his way as a returner.
Campbell’s growing participation in football’s third phase meant Daboll’s decision to sit the veteran against the Packers impacted the plans of special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey.
He explained to Leonard how Campbell’s absence prompted Gunner Olszewski to call fair catch twice: “Parris is a hell of a football player. You don’t ever want to take a guy like that off the field, but that’s what the situation called for, that’s just something we had to do.”
Not being able to help on special teams is one thing, but Campbell’s absence was more personally costly because of how another receiver is seizing his role on offense.
Wan’Dale Robinson’s Becoming the Roving Playmaker Brian Daboll Needs
Wan’Dale Robinson is successfully taking on the versatile role the Giants had hoped Campbell would make his own. Second-year pro Robinson burned the Packers for 79 yards on six catches.
Robinson also made an impact in the running game. Notably, by taking this carry for 32 yards, highlighted by Nick Falato of SB Nation’s Big Blue View.
This is the kind of play Campbell was signed to make. He was also acquired to be a factor from the slot, but Robinson’s 290 snaps from the inside already eclipses the 147 played by Campbell.
The Giants signed Campbell to add a roving playmaker to Daboll’s offense, but they already had one on the roster. Fortunately, the deal didn’t cost the Giants much, so Robinson’s emergence can help Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen feel comfortable about quickly moving on from Campbell.
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