Tyrone Tracy’s woes continue in Giants’ preseason win over Dolphins
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — With so many starters sitting, the Giants on a steamy Saturday in South Florida were more interested in figuring out various roster spots than they were getting their marquee players tuned up for the real season.
This was going to be an afternoon for some to rise and others to fall.
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Consider Tyrone Tracy Jr. as having stumbled, again.
The third-year running back, a productive player on bad teams the past two years, continued to struggle in a summer to forget. Just as it looked as if he hit his groove, he hit a wall. And where this goes from here is anyone’s guess.
Veteran Devin Singletary started at running back, with Cam Skattebo on the sideline with most of the other frontline players on offense, including quarterback Jaxson Dart.
Tracy came in on the second series and stayed in for the third series and that is where it all went wrong for him as the Giants had no trouble beating the Dolphins 26-3 in a preseason game at Hard Rock Stadium.
Tracy ran for 11 yards and then, bottled up, made a strong cut to his left for a 12-yard pickup. On the Dolphins 10-yard line, Tracy got it again and that is where disaster struck. He lost control of the ball without any contact for a brutal turnover.
As the first quarter expired, Tracy stood on the sideline, by himself, looking skyward, clearly upset with himself.
“There’s a lot of guys fighting for jobs on this team,’’ head coach John Harbaugh said afterward.
Tracy is currently losing that fight.
Harbaugh said, “I’m not commenting on that’’ when asked how the fumble might affect Tracy’s chances to make the team.
Singletary was on the field the next time the Giants had the ball and he ran through the Dolphins, finishing off a 71-yard drive by bursting to the right for a 13-yard touchdown scamper.
The 28-year-old veteran has had an impressive training camp. He ran it eight times for 40 yards.
“He played like he always plays,’’ Harbaugh said. “One of the most consistent players you’re ever going to see.’’
Harbaugh cannot say the same right now about Tracy. In the preseason-opening loss to the Vikings, Tracy blatantly missed a blitz pickup and Dart got crushed.
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The Giants did not sign veteran running back Najee Harris as a direct response to Tracy’s blunder but that Tracy has not wowed the new coaching staff cannot be ignored.
The signing of Harris changed the dynamic of the running back room and upped the ante on the competition.
Skattebo is safe, of course, and it certainly appears Singletary is, as well.
On Thursday, Harris was given snaps in the joint practice with the Dolphins but he did not play in this game; he is coming off surgery to repair a torn Achilles suffered Sept. 21 when he was with the Chargers.
Before that, he started his NFL career with four consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons with the Steelers.
If healthy, it feels inevitable that Harris will be on the team and have a role on offense. Harbaugh has said Eric Gray “has really had a good camp.” Where does that leave Tracy? At this point, he is on the outside looking in.
In 32 games the past two seasons, Tracy — a 2024 fifth-round draft pick — rushed for 839 and 740 yards, respectively, and surpassed 1,000 yards from scrimmage both years. This, however, is a new beginning for the Giants with Harbaugh running the show and everyone has to prove his worth to him.
Tracy finished with six carries for 26 yards and three receptions for 22 yards.
The first half was all Jameis Winston at quarterback for the Giants.
Dart was superb in the joint practice two days earlier and that was enough in the heat of South Florida for him. “Certain guys, I’m sure, got enough work,’’ Harbaugh said Thursday, and Dart was one of those certain guys.
Winston was 15-for-21 passing for 150 yards and an 11-yard rushing touchdown.
“You expect Jameis to play just like that,’’ Harbaugh said. “He was in control, he ran the show, he’s poised in the pocket, he was very accurate with his passing, he played at a high level just like you’d expect him to. It’s a great thing to have a quarterback like that as your No. 2.’’
Darius Slayton, coming off surgery to repair a sports hernia, has been fairly quiet this summer but broke out with four receptions for 58 yards against a Dolphins defense also resting several starters.
“That was big,’’ Harbaugh told The Post. “So big. Honestly, I needed to see that.
“I mean you have to do it every year, you have to come back and keep doing it. He’s been battling through those injuries so to see him step up like that and make those plays was really good.’’
