The New York Giants spent their three selections on the final day of the 2024 NFL draft adding depth to positions of need.
That included the selection of Purdue running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. in the fifth round at No. 166 overall. Even though Tracy will be on the depth chart behind Devin Singletary, but the backup role is wide open.
With the Giants bringing Tracy in to compete for that backup role, the move was lauded by Touchdown Wire's Doug Farrar, who labeled the selection as a sleeper.
With Saquon Barkley out of the picture, the Giants had a pre-draft running back rotation of Devin Singletary, 2023 fifth-round pick Eric Gray, and a bunch of “meh” after that. Which means that anyone coming in from the draft would have an opportunity beyond the preseason.
Enter Purdue running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., who at 5′ 11⅛” and 209 pounds, totaled 714 yards, eight touchdowns, 46 forced missed tackles, 14 carries of 15 or more yards, and 36 first downs on just 114 carries. That put Tracy with a yards per carry average of 6.3 — another arbiter of his big-play potential and ability to run with power. Tracy can also catch the ball. In fact, before he was a running back at Purdue, he was a receiver at Iowa, and he actually made big plays in that garbage fire of an offense. Not bad for a guy who was there with the 166th overall pick in the fifth round.
Tracy has an interesting background coming into the NFL. He spent his time at Iowa as a receiver and then transitioned to running back when he transferred to Purdue for the final two seasons of his collegiate career.
Singletary will be the starter in the backfield, but Tracy has a real chance to carve out a role in the backfield considering the lack of formidable depth in the room going into the summer.
For more Giants coverage, check out Kevin Hickey's work on Sporting News.
