According to New York Giants beat reporter Dan Duggan of The Athletic, a training camp competition for middle linebacker appears to be developing. “It appears Micah McFadden will have to compete for the starting ILB position [this year],” Duggan said following the July 26 session. “Dyontae Johnson and Carter Coughlin have gotten some reps with the first team in camp. And it doesn’t appear to be directly tied to McFadden’s pitch count, as he was with the second-team defense at moments today.”
This is a significant development, as McFadden was one of the Giants’ more consistent 2023 starts, recording 14 caps and 737 snaps with the first-team defense alongside veteran team leader Bobby Okereke.
That was not the case for McFadden as a rookie, as the fifth-round pick shared snaps with Tae Crowder for most of the season. Still, it felt like Big Blue discovered something in the Indiana product, and it’s far too early to say that’s no longer true.
The bigger takeaway here is that everyone is going to have to earn their place in new coordinator Shane Bowen’s defense, no matter what happened under Wink Martindale before him. If McFadden can do that, he’ll slot back in right where he left things off in 2023.
Micah McFadden’s analytics indicate that the Giants should not give him a starting role. While he had certain strengths, he also had weaknesses. On the plus side, he recorded 101 combined tackles for the first time in his NFL career, recovered four fumbles and one interception — indicating his importance in the takeaway department — and delivered on 12 tackles for loss, which matched his rookie total.
