New York Giants outside linebacker Oshane Ximines’ NFL career started off with a lot of optimism. Then, coaching changes and injuries threw a monkey wrench into his growth as a player.
This season, his fourth and possibly final with the Giants, Ximines has embraced the player-first system being deployed by defensive coordinator Wink Martindale. As a result, he’s become the productive player the Giants hoped when they selected him in the third round in the 2019 NFL draft.
Ximines was the first player ever drafted out of Old Dominion University and after a strong rookie season that saw him rack up 4.5 sacks, he fell off the team’s radar.
That changed this year as a) he’s healthy and b) very few other linebackers are. Ximines has taken full advantage of the opportunities that are being afforded him. He has been on the field for 50 percent of the defensive snaps and 35 percent of the special teams stats.
Ximines was up against some talented rookies and a group of veterans in camp that were predicted to displace him. It didn’t happen. He’ still here and he is making a difference.
“I knew I was going to work my tail off coming into camp just to get a spot on the team,” he said. “I really didn’t wonder about playing time and other things. I just tried to come in and maximize every day I had, every opportunity that I had. That’s been working for me. I’m just trying to stick to that and not worry about the other things I can’t control.”
Ximines is just one of the many players on this Giants’ roster who is experiencing a renaissance. Combined with the new faces on the team, it’s all adding up to a 5-1 start.
“I love this rookie class, not just on the field, but off the field and in the locker room,” Ximines said. “They’ve got great energy. They come to work; they come ready to work every single day. All those guys, they made great plays, and they stepped up big in this game. They all contributed to the win, and I’m proud of all those dudes. We’re just going to keep them rolling, keep them going so they can keep making those plays and we can keep getting those wins.”
One of those rookies was a rival, linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux, who recorded his first NFL sack on Sunday.
“It was a big day for him because he got his first career sack,” Ximines said. “It’s a moment that we all shared with him, and we’re all going to remember that together. It was a big moment for him, and we all love him there in the locker room. So, we all just wanted to show him some love on his big day. It was a big play, too. You know, a strip-sack to win the game — it doesn’t get much bigger than that. He had a great play; we were all happy for him.”
The Giants are in excellent position to have their first winning season since 2016 and team-first players such as Ximines are the reason why that could happen.
