New York Giants running back Cam Skattebo delivered his best performance of the season last week, rushing 17 times for 124 yards and a touchdown against the Houston Texans. The outing came after Skattebo had been benched in the previous game, taking just six snaps with zero carries following a costly fumble.
Early in the season, Skattebo struggled with efficiency, averaging only 3.6 yards per carry over the Giants' first five games. That struggle now appears understandable given the severity of the injury that ended his 2025 campaign: a right ankle dislocation, an open tibia fracture, and a ruptured deltoid ligament.
Skattebo disclosed this week that he feared his foot would have to be amputated and even considered retirement during his recovery. He and the Giants released an hour-long documentary detailing his rehabilitation, in which he revealed a premonition before the game where the injury occurred.
"Before the game, I actually had an out-of-body experience," Skattebo said via GiantsWire. "We were all praying in the showers. I was holding both my teammates' hands. It almost felt like, when we were praying, my body was lifted out of my own body. It was weird. I didn't feel like I was in the present me. I didn't feel like myself."
After seeing the injury, Skattebo said he asked doctors if they would have to cut off his foot. "When I first got hurt, like I'm asking the doctors, like, they're going to have to cut my foot off," he told The New York Post. "As soon as the doctor touched my foot, I felt pain. He snapped (my ankle) back into place, and it was like, 'A sigh of relief.' Once I got in the X-Ray room, they cut my shoe off, they cut my sock off, I was a half-second from passing out because I had dislocated it so far that the skin ripped."
Skattebo avoided amputation and did not retire. He is now back on the field and appears to be the lead back for the Giants, especially after the team released Najee Harris and placed Tyrone Tracy Jr. on injured reserve. Maintaining the improved efficiency shown against the Texans will be key, but his return to play at all is remarkable given the extent of his injury.
