With just 10 days to go before their regular season opener on September 12, the Giants are not finished adding to their offensive line. And rightfully so, given how thin they are from a depth standpoint, especially on the interior.
As a result, they went out and signed veteran center/guard Matt Skura, as ESPN’s Jordan Raanan reported on Thursday morning.
The #Giants are expected to sign OL Matt Skura to the practice squad, per source. Another interior lineman. Has played for the Ravens and Dolphins. Brings experience. He has 51 career starts! Has been a starter each of the last four seasons.
Although the Giants traded for a pair of linemen earlier in the week in Billy Price and Ben Bredeson, Skura is the most intriguing pickup, as he has started a total of 51 games in the NFL. He also spent the last four seasons as a starter for the Baltimore Ravens.
Skura was signed by the Ravens back in 2016 as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Duke University. He initially got his first shot with Baltimore when longtime staple Marshal Yanda went down with a season-ending ankle injury in the beginning of the 2017 season.
This paved the way for Skura to start 12 games at right guard, where he impressed his former team. After Ryan Jensen was released during the following offseason, Skura took over as the Ravens’ starting center and flourished in this role.
However, a season-ending knee injury in Week 11 of 2019 derailed what was becoming a promising career for Skura. And while he was able to come back and serve as a starter for the Ravens last season, his performance on the field was not as strong.
Skura signed a one-year deal with the Miami Dolphins in March, but was released on August 30, 2021. Now, he has a new home on the Giants’ practice squad, and could potentially find himself back on the active roster soon enough.
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Skura’s Role
Although the Giants signed Skura to their practice squad, his role could be way larger this season given the lack of depth on the offensive line.
And with projected starting left guard Shane Lemieux dealing with a partially torn patellar tendon in his knee, Skura might be asked to step in and fill his spot. While Lemieux is going to attempt to play through this injury without undergoing surgery, that is a tall task.
If Lemieux can’t stay on the field this year, Skura might just be the Giants’ best option at this point. As previously mentioned, Skura has been a starter for the past four years, but he has lost a step since his season-ending knee injury in 2019.
Hurricane Ida
The northeast was hit hard on Wednesday evening by the remnants of hurricane Ida, especially New York and New Jersey. In fact, the flooding was so bad that it forced Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett to sleep in his office at the Quest Diagnostics Center last night.
Jason Garrett says he slept in his office here at Quest last night. Thought it was the best move with the weather hit the area.
In the aftermath of the storm, some of the flooding had subsided by Thursday morning, which luckily allowed the Giants to hit the practice field safely in East Rutherford. Now, it will be full steam ahead, as they have just 10 days to prepare for their Week 1 matchup with the Denver Broncos.
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Giants Sign Ex-Ravens Starting Interior Offensive Lineman