The New York Giants (3-6) head into the bye week coming off a victory over the Las Vegas Raiders 23-16. One player that had a large impact on that win is rookie edge rusher Quincy Roche, whos strip-sack on quarterback Derek Carr sealed the deal for the Giants victory. . Roche has had an interesting NFL journey up to this point, and has now found a starting job for the Giants.
Roche was a sixth round draft pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers this year. He was later cut following the preseason. The Giants claimed Roche and Collin Johnson following their cuts. Since then, Roche went from being inactive to starting for Big Blue.
Roche was a favorite of mine in this draft after the production he had in Temple and Miami. Roche had 30.5 sacks in his four years of college football. I believed he was going to be a third/fourth round pick, but he fell even further. There were concerns with his motor, being a three-down rusher. He has since shown he’s capable of handling the snaps and can create production when called upon.
The Giants now have rookies Azeez Ojulari and Roche starting at both ends. Fellow rookie Elerson Smith was activated this week, so it’ll be interesting to see if he also gets some reps and show the progression they have shown. Roche has good size and can be athletic on the edge. During his strip sack today he was being held and still stayed on his feet to strip the ball from Derek Carr.
The Giants may have found a diamond in the rough as a pass rusher. I believe that Ojulari and Roche can be part of the future on the defensive line for New York. Both players combined have 6.5 sacks on the year thus far. Roche has seen his snaps increase throughout the season with an injury to Lorenzo Carter and less snaps going to Oshane Ximines (who was a healthy scratch against the Raiders). The Giants hope to see more progress and development from their rookie pass rushers throughout the season.