New Giant Bobby McCain looking forward to playing with Xavier McKinney
Bobby McCain of the Washington Football Team celebrates after returning an interception for a touchdown against the Giants at MetLife on Sunday, Jan 09, 2021 in East Rutherford, N.J. Credit: Mike Stobe
New Giant Bobby McCain is not shy.
“I’ll be playing safety here. I’ll be looking to be the guy,” he said on a Giants Zoom call Thursday. “I’m coming here to play. I’m coming here to compete. And I’m coming here to win."
As the Giants continue to fill spots during free agency, they have mostly handed out short-term contracts that don’t break the bank. McCain, 29, signed a one-year deal and said he expects to join Xavier McKinney as the Giants' safety tandem.
“There are things that we can both help each other with — whether it’s on the field, off the field,” McCain said. “I know he’s a really good player. He’s going to continue being a good player in this league. And just us being able to communicate, we’ve already been in contact and been in touch. And us being able to communicate will help each other and it’ll help us go a long way.”
Asked what he respects most about the 24-year-old McKinney’s game, McCain said: “He goes and gets the football. That’s the most important thing out there, the pigskin. He goes. He finds the ball, and the ball finds him.”
The Giants sought a starting safety after Julian Love left in free agency, signing a two-year, $12 million deal with the Seahawks. Jason Pinnock and Dane Belton are the other safeties on the Giants' roster.
Entering his ninth season, McCain has started 45 games at safety, including 22 in his two seasons in Washington.
In three seasons, McKinney has six interceptions; in eight seasons, McCain has 11.
McCain has four career sacks, which he knows might change this season under defensive coordinator Wink Martindale, an aggressive play-caller.
"I like to blitz," McCain said. “I can do it all. I can cover, blitz. You name it, I can do it."
Giants sign ex-Jet WR Crowder
The Giants signed wide receiver Jamison Crowder to a one-year deal Thursday. The eight-year veteran played three seasons with the Jets before joining the Bills in 2022. He played in only four games with Buffalo before suffering a season-ending ankle injury.
The Giants agreed to terms Thursday with cornerback Amani Oruwariye. He was a fifth-round pick in the 2019 draft by the Lions. In 53 career games, he has nine interceptions.
Kimberly Jones covers the Giants for Newsday, a beat she first worked in the early 2000s before joining the YES Network to cover the Yankees. She worked for the NFL Network for more than a decade and has been heard semi-regularly on WFAN.
