Giants running back Cam Skattebo only played a handful of snaps in Sunday's loss to the Saints and he never touched the ball, but head coach John Harbaugh said that wasn't by design and that Skattebo was not benched after losing a fumble in overtime of their Week 5 tie with the Commanders.
Skattebo had a somewhat different read on things. Skattebo said he "didn't expect to have zero" touches, but — as reported ahead of the game — that he was told that he would be seeing a sharp reduction in playing time.
“I got punished for what I did and I understand it," Skattebo said, via Charlotte Carroll of TheAthletic.com. "I gotta be ready when coach calls my name and that wasn’t today. . . . The message was keep your head down and keep going. They understand the type of player I am and I just gotta continue to do my job and do it to the best of my abilities."
Skattebo confirmed that the punishment was related to the fumble and reiterated that he accepts the team's decision.
“It’s hard, but I've made mistakes and I got to own up to them," Skattebo said. "If that is what they want to do — keep me on the sidelines because of that — I totally understand. I can’t make mistakes at this level of this game and when you make mistakes like that, consequences will be had."
The Giants got 34 yards on 14 carries by Tyrone Tracy, Devin Singletary and Najee Harris on Sunday, so they had to really stick to their guns to avoid looking Skattebo's way for an offensive spark that didn't come until J.J. McCarthy entered at quarterback with the Giants down 34-10 in the fourth quarter. We'll now wait to find out if Skattebo will get another shot against the Texans in Week 7.