When people hear the name Tommy DeVito, they immediately say, ‘Where did I hear that name before?’ and, of course, they are reminded that was Joe Pesci’s character’s name in the film, GoodFellas.
New York Giant fans now know that name belongs to the rookie quarterback they signed out of Illinois after this year’s NFL draft. He is the same Tommy DeVito that starred at local high school powerhouse Don Bosco Prep and spent four years at Syracuse before ending his college career at Illinois in 2022.
DeVito is attempting to secure the Giants’ third-string quarterback job (if there is one to be had) behind Daniel Jones and Tyrod Taylor. He participated in the Giants’ rookie minicamp this weekend along with two other quarterbacks — former Los Angeles Ram backup Bryce Perkins and Clemson’s Hunter Johnson.
The difference is the Giants have DeVito’s name on a contract while the other two are here on a tryout basis.
Although DeVito, a native of Cedar Grove (which he describes as “15 minutes away, maybe less, down Route 3, so it’s like I’m playing in my own backyard”), has the inside track, he’s a long way from where he needs to be if he’s going to be anywhere near the Giants’ roster.
“[DeVito] spun the ball pretty good, was productive,” head coach Brian Daboll said, via the New York Post. “Was good in the meetings that we had with him. I know he’s a local legend around here, but he’s got a long way to go, a lot to learn. Good young man to work with.”
That has practice squad written all over it, which isn’t a bad thing. The Giants usually went with two quarterbacks all of last season as third-stringer Davis Webb was either parked on the practice squad or inactive until starting the meaningless final game of the season versus Philadelphia.
This opportunity is a dream come true for the local legend. When he entered the Giants locker room for the first time, he gravitated to one part, specifically — where the quarterbacks dress.
“First place I went to was to go see where Daniel Jones’ locker is,” DeVito said. “That was kind of cool. And then right next to mine is where I saw a little plaque above where Eli [Manning’s] locker was. That was cool to see, I’ve never seen that before. It was surreal, kind of just soaking in every day.”
With any hope, this won’t be the last time he’ll be soaking in the sights in East Rutherford. The Giants have been on the lookout for a young quarterback to develop. DeVito just could be that guy.
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