John Harbaugh Credits Players And God For Overtime Victory

John Harbaugh took the microphone immediately after Sunday's overtime victory against the Houston Texans to give credit where it was due. The New York Giants coach insisted that the win belonged to his players, specifically naming quarterback J.J. McCarthy and running back Cam Skattebo. He also gave thanks to God for the result. "First of all, I just want to humbly say, just personally, very grateful to my Lord, High Rock, Protector and Stronghold, the Lord God in heaven," Harbaugh stated at the start of his news conference. "And our guys, man, that was a player's win."

The Giants were expected to succeed this season with their young quarterback and running back doing impressive things, yet no one could have predicted McCarthy would be the starter instead of Jaxson Dart. Similarly, nobody saw Skattebo getting another chance after falling out of favor with the coaching staff earlier in the week. Both players performed outstandingly well to help defeat the Texans. Skattebo rushed for a career-high 124 yards and delivered perhaps the game's defining run in overtime to set up the winning points. He ran so hard throughout the contest that on one play he was flagged for unnecessary roughness because he buried a potential tackler.

On New York's second possession, Skattebo took a handoff from McCarthy and drove through a hole before lowering his head to run through Texans safety M.J. Stewart. He steamrolled Stewart but the NFL prioritizes player safety these days, so the official flagged him for lowering his head before making contact. Larry Csonka, Jim Brown and Earl Campbell would have been proud of that effort. And the 15 yard penalty that followed would have been foreign and appalling to all-time greats like them. Skattebo wasn't done either. He scored on a 16-yard run and in overtime got off a 42-yard run that gave the Giants the football at the Houston 28 yard line. A field goal would have won it from there, but Devin Singletary ran in for a TD on the next play to seal a Giants win.

Harbaugh, who benched Skattebo last week, said his running back played with a "fierce joy" on Sunday. The coach also noted how McCarthy responded in his start to deliver his first win as the Giants starting quarterback. McCarthy was officially named the starter on Wednesday, succeeding Jameis Winston who had succeeded the injured Dart. McCarthy joined the team 27 days ago when he was traded from the Minnesota Vikings and had a good day. He was generally efficient, completing 20 of 28 passes for 252 yards. He didn't throw a touchdown pass, but didn't throw an interception or fumble either. "I thought he did a great job," Harbaugh said. "He sure didn't play perfect but he played a heck of a football game. He deserves a lot of credit."

The twin performance by his youngsters left Harbaugh confident his team can answer challenges, some of which he himself posed including the benching of Skattebo. "It tells you who they are," he said. "I thought before the game we're going to find out about our guys." The Giants remain the only team in the NFC East with a winning record. Getting their practically new young quarterback to perform while rediscovering the team's leading rusher suggests this team will be relevant despite not having Dart. "We're going to be in it until the end now," Harbaugh said.