EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — It was a Friday afternoon. The New York Giants were winless after two weeks and coach Brian Daboll was in the middle of his normal Friday news conference before his team played its home opener against the Kansas City Chiefs.
A reporter was asking Daboll a question when rookie running back Cam Skattebo, football’s version of the Tasmanian Devil, walked behind the media pack. Skattebo stopped, smiled and gave a sarcastic sidearmed wave to Daboll behind the row of cameras.
Daboll closed his eyes, smirked and shook his head. He had lost his train of thought.
“Sorry, Skattebo,” Daboll said as if this type of humorous interaction was a common occurrence. “Can you repeat [that question], please.”
There’s no one quite like Cam Skattebo 🤣 pic.twitter.com/Lu3CHjYx0T
— New York Giants (@Giants) September 19, 2025
At that point, all anyone at the Quest Diagnostic Training Center could hear was Skattebo’s trademark call.
“Wooooooooooooooo!” the rookie shrieked as he ran onto the field.
This is Cam Skattebo, the energetic and unique Giants fourth-round pick who never seems to talk with an inside voice and used to run into telephone poles as a young child. He sprints onto the field with the enthusiasm of a 10-year-old given carte blanche in a candy store.
This was his routine as he came onto the field at training camp. It has extended into the regular season.
“It’s a daily thing,” Daboll said as this all unfolded several weeks back.
Skattebo still wasn’t done.
“Wooooooooooooooo!” he yelled again moments later.
“Let’s f—ing go!” he added.
This is the type of energy Skattebo brings to the team, both in the building and on the field.
Skattebo and rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart have added a new element to the Giants, who enter Thursday night’s matchup with the rival Philadelphia Eagles (8:15 p.m. ET, Fox) off a tough loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. After Skattebo and his new quarterback had strong games in Dart’s first start, an upset win over the Los Angeles Chargers, this past week was a reality check. Dart had three turnovers, and Skattebo’s fumble in the red zone was returned for a touchdown in the 26-14 loss to the Saints.
But these are the players the Giants are counting on to lead them forward offensively. Dart was a first-round pick out of Ole Miss. Skattebo was a Heisman Trophy finalist who has proved doubters wrong everywhere from high school in Northern California to Sacramento State to Arizona State before falling to the fourth round. Their youthful exuberance gives the team a different feel.
“[Skattebo’s] like that pretty much all the time,” Daboll said after the news conference interruption.
It’s who Skattebo is as a player and teammate. It’s evident from the stories told by his teammates and parents:
Becky Skattebo, mom:
“Cam has always been able to figure out how to get up, over and through things. He would get out of every car seat you can find. That’s how he ended up with the ‘Houdini’ nickname because if he didn’t want to be somewhere, he was getting out of the situation he was in. … He would put his brother’s shoulder pads on and he would run into telephone poles. Once he got onto the field, it was no surprise the punishment he inflicted on his own body and everybody else.”
Leo Skattebo, dad
“So you guys only see the football part of it. He’s not like that in his personal life. He is very quiet, [has a] very quiet demeanor in his personal life with us. But then anything that comes with competitiveness like video games or basketball or football, that’s when the intensity comes out. It’s like a switch that he turns on because if he’s not playing something or doing something, he’s the most laid-back kid there is. I’ve never asked him, but it’s just kind of weird. He goes between the lines and he turns on some sort of competitiveness and then his energy just changes.
“When he was little, he wasn’t so much of an outgoing personality with the team because he was always the best player. So he didn’t need to fire the kids up. The kids just kind of gravitated toward him and they just kind of fed off of him and then relied on him. I think the outgoingness started maybe at ASU because I don’t think he was crazy at [Sacramento] State either. I think ASU when he got with [coach Kenny] Dillingham and that environment kind of opened up his personality more, I think within the locker room and then practice.”
“He was just always tough. So when he was younger, he would get in trouble a lot by referees and stuff because he would hit too hard. You get flags because, oh, he must have done something wrong because the other kid’s laying on his back. His personality has always been the type of person that he’s going to inflict all of his energy on somebody. And it has been like that from day one. He’s never shied away from that at all.”
QB Jaxson Dart, close friend and fellow rookie:
“Skatt’s somebody who it doesn’t matter where he is or who he is around. He just acts himself. I think that is something early on people try to figure out when you don’t really know a guy. But when you figure out that it’s genuine, you figure out what kind of friend he is, what kind of teammate he is. He’ll do anything it takes to win. That is something that guys really rally around. He’s a spark.
“The first [time we met] we said three words to each other and just head-butted each other. That was kind of like the start of our relationship. When we first got here to the [Giants] facility and met each other for the first time. We were able to spend more time on the plane to the [NFLPA] rookie premiere and they put us right next to each. Obviously we’re still getting to know each other. I fell asleep on the plane and I wake up to this dude wet-willying me and trying to put food on my face while I’m sleeping. That is kind of an accurate representation. It’s 100% [who he is].”
QB Jameis Winston:
“When he got drafted, he sent me a picture of him eating a ‘W’ [Winston’s signature bit] and said, ‘Let’s go!!!’ The very day he got drafted. I was like, ‘Man, I love you.’ He’s amazing. And I always admired him at Arizona State. Just seeing this, he ate at Arizona State. I knew he was wild.”
WR/KR Gunner Olszewski:
“He blurts out anything. You don’t know, sometimes it’s right, sometimes it’s wrong. But it’s always loud. That’s pretty much [in] any meeting we have. He’s going to say something. He’s learning, though. He’s awesome. He’s as genuine as they come. He’s genuinely an idiot. [Reserved] is not in his wheelhouse. He doesn’t know where he’s at. Most rookies when they first get into the league are like, ‘Oh my god, it’s the NFL.’ For him it’s just another day playing football.”
RB Tyrone Tracy Jr.:
“Everyone tells me, bro, get your rook. I’m like, ‘Bro, what you want me to do? Tell him to be quiet?’ He’s always yelling. He’s very loud. We’ll be in meetings and Skatt asks a question — just yells it out. He might be wrong, but he’ll yell it out and everyone looks at me. I’m like, ‘Bro, what y’all want me to do?’ It’s nothing crazy. Just like, he’s always yelling. Whether it’s yelling out stuff in the meeting room or just screaming when he goes out to practice or something. He’s just very loud. I think if you paid him to be quiet for a day, he couldn’t do it. That’s what I think.”
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RB Dante Miller:
“I’ve never seen [some]one chew seeds louder. He eats loud. He does everything loud. It’s quiet [in the meeting room] and he’s munching on seeds and I’m like, this is not normal.
“What’s a crazy cartoon character? That’s a very, very good comparison. Like the Tasmanian Devil. I like that. But he chews his seeds very loud.”
TE Daniel Bellinger:
“Zero filter. First time at a special teams meeting he asks, what’s our job? Our job is to play with speed, get off the ball. And this animal just goes ‘Physicality!’ And it just made no sense. [He] just yells things out. No filter at all. Whether it’s right or wrong, he’ll just yell it out. That’s Skatt for you. I mean I’ve had some characters. I feel like [Sterling Shepard] was kind of wild. Some of these guys, Ihmir [Smith-Marsette] is a little bit wild. But this guy’s one of a kind. No filter.
“The first time I met him we’re in the sauna and then we go into the ice tub and we’re sitting there in the ice tub and this guy, right when we get in, just starts yelling. He’s like, ‘Ahhhhhhhh! I’m like, ‘Are you OK?’ This guy’s a little different. And I’ve never met any other teammate quite like him.”
WR Jalin Hyatt:
“We’re looking at [his big block in the opener] and we’re definitely trying to teach him to keep his head up, so he doesn’t get fined or anything. But it’s hard to do with him. He’s a running back, you know what I mean? He sees anyone, he wants to run through them. So it’s hard to tell a running back to keep their head up. We’re trying. It might take some time.”
LB Bobby Okereke, defensive captain
“I love it. As a young player, that is how you build a great roster. You have veteran leadership and presence and young energy. He definitely brings it. He’s breaking down the huddle. He’s hooting and hollering and getting guys energized. And from a physicality standpoint, he brings it.”
