Kayvon Thibodeaux

Kayvon Thibodeaux scored one touchdown and prevented another at the one-yard line with a game-saving tackle as the New York Giants beat the Washington ...

He coached scared in the first half when Washington had a chance to take control early, punting twice inside Giants territory. That would the best opportunity the Commanders would have to force overtime. [Daniel Jones](https://www.nj.com/giants/2022/12/giants-get-huge-performances-from-daniel-jones-and-saquon-barkley-to-take-down-commanders.html), who won his biggest start as a quarterback with some clutch passes into tight windows. That wasn’t the last time that Heinicke and Thibodeaux would meet. Two weeks ago when these same two teams played to a 20-20 tie, Thibodeaux had crushed Heinicke late in overtime but failed to jar the ball loose. The Giants hadn’t taken a single offensive play in Washington territory when Thibodeaux bullied through the Commanders offensive line and ripped the ball out of quarterback Taylor Heinicke’s hand. I just seen the ball and kept going.” He recognized that Thibodeaux had the talent to become an elite pass rusher, and that his bombastic personality was an asset. “We’re not going to hear the end of it.” [“turned off”](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10033495-nfl-draft-rumors-some-giants-execs-turned-off-by-kayvon-thibodeauxs-personality) by his personality and his supposed penchant for taking plays off at Oregon. Joe Schoen, in one of his first moves as Giants general manager, was smart enough to ignore the noise and select him at No. “It’s below two degrees, and we came to play, and we came to finish, man.

New York Giants rookie edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux had one of the best defensive performances of the 2022 regular season on Sunday night, ...

He shined the brightest under the brightest of lights and on the biggest stage of his young career, earning the [Giants Wire Player of the Game](https://giantswire.usatoday.com/2022/12/18/new-york-giants-washington-commanders-player-of-game-kayvon-thibodeaux/). [prime time liked him](https://giantswire.usatoday.com/2022/12/15/new-york-giants-kayvon-thibodeaux-prime-time-likes-me/). Even outside of the big highlight reel plays, Thibodeaux made every snap count.

The fifth-overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft is starting to round into the player the Giants hoped to be getting.

For me, I had to say it and believe it, and I was able to do it. I think we were able to execute, and everybody was able to make plays." "It exudes out of how we play. “I was in coverage right there. That 1-yard saved was extremely important, as the Giants defense stood strong and prevented Washington from scoring. An underrated play by Thibodeaux came on the Commanders’ final drive. The former Oregon star suffered a preseason knee injury that forced him to miss the first two games of the regular season. And sometimes, it can take an entire season for a rookie to feel at home. She said it was in her heart to tell me that you can do anything you put your mind to. But with each passing week, Thibodeauz's impact on the games became more evident. It showed in his production. Rookies often have to get used to the game's speed, which many say can take several weeks.

In a game that would significantly alter the Giants' chances of making the playoffs in either direction, Thibodeaux played like a man on a mission. The rookie ...

Thibodeaux had a whopping nine quarterback pressures in his first primetime game against the Cowboys on Thanksgiving, which seemed at the time like a sign of greater things to come. Not only did he step up and talk about it, he was about it on the field. “When you look down and you see him running, and you look down, and you see the goal line right there — that isn’t about angles, that’s about making a play. He’s a big part of our defense.” “It was a game that you knew you had to dig deep,” Thibodeaux said. I’m glad he is a part of the team,” head coach Brian Daboll said. It’s got a little wink to it.” I think we were able to execute, and everybody was able to make plays.” Thibodeaux later showed tremendous instincts when he made a game-saving tackle with 1:03 remaining. The rookie fired up his team with words of encouragement during a pregame huddle — something he had never done before. Thibodeaux’s big talent and big personality have been built for New York since the Giants drafted him fifth overall out of Oregon in April, and we all knew a night like this was coming. Everybody called out who they wanted, and it was a battle.