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New York Giants wide receiver John Ross is a speedster. In fact, he’s one of the NFL’s fastest players and even after an early career ravaged with injuries, it’s still something defenders must be wary of.
When Ross entered Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints, he was met with a familiar reaction: players in the secondary yelling and waiving for others to “get back.”
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They did, but it still didn’t work. Ross ran past them and hauled in his first reception of the 2021 regular-season: a 52-yard touchdown off the arm of quarterback Daniel Jones.
“We kind of got what we were looking for. DJ put a great ball out there, and I just had to go get it. That was pretty much it. It was a great call by the coaches and I just wanted to make a play,” Ross told reporters on Monday.
But Ross wants to bring more to the table than just his speed.
“I think [speed is] something that’s hard to coach against. Once you utilize it, it’s something you have to really hone in on,” Ross said. “[But] I feel like every facet of my game is important because I have to continue to show why I should be in there for multiple reasons. I’ve always said this, I never want to be a one-trick pony.
“I don’t want to go in the game and the defense is like — I think I went in [on Sunday], and the defense was kind of waving back, like, ‘Get back.’ I kind of want to be more than that. So, for me to go out there and make those two plays, it felt good. It felt good to put us in a different position and help continue moving the ball in different ways, and not just all the way down the field.”
The two plays Ross references were a comeback and a slant — both key plays in the game that showed there’s much more to Ross than straight-line speed.
But even beyond those two plays, Ross brought even more to the table. He graded out as the Giants’ best run blocker on the day (82.8) and helped spur Saquon Barkley more than once. He also showed out as a downfield blocker for fellow wide receiver Kenny Golladay and others.
“It helps a lot. We try to get guys’ eyes turned and down the field. The biggest thing is when you have someone as talented as 26 back there, you never know. You want to make sure you block as much as you can, as long as you can, because you never know where that ball is going to go when that ball touches his hand,” Ross said.
“It’s always critical for us to take pride in that because that ball can start left and end up right and you never know. We just want to make sure we try to take our man out as best as we can.”
Ross proved two things on Sunday: His impressive summer was no fluke and there’s a lot more to his game than just running fast.
Whether he’s burning by defenders, blocking downfield, clearing out the secondary or showcasing quality route running, Ross offers Jason Garrett & Co. a very unique and effective weapon.
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