The New York Giants’ two best players Saquon Barkley and Dexter Lawrence are not in the top 10 in their respective positions in Pro Bowl voting, while Bobby Okereke, Kayvon Thibodeau, and Jamie Gillan are within striking distance of earning their first career placements.
As Ed Valentine of BigBlueView relayed to the NFL World, the voting has not been kind to Barkley and Lawrence despite noteworthy numbers and their impact on Giants wins.
Barkley and Lawrence Have Uphill Battle to Climb Before 2024 Pro-Bowl Voting Closes
Barkley missed time with a high-ankle sprain earlier in the season yet ranks No. 13 with 697 rushing yards. However, he’s fallen victim to a woeful Giants’ offensive line that has failed to protect him and their revolving door of quarterbacks, as Barkley has only seen the end zone once in 2023.
The former All-Pro running back has 129 yards in the Giants’ last two wins. Yet, there are a host of talented backs that have seen more time on the field and have contributed more to winning franchises that have gotten the edge over him.
Meanwhile, Lawrence has missed the Giants’ last game due to a hamstring injury but has otherwise played well on the year. He was recently named to the Pro Football Focus Third Quarter All-Pro team thanks to five sacks on the season. Lawrence has been active in exploding off of the line of scrimmage and making life difficult on opposing quarterbacks with a 92.5 pass-rush grade.
Yet, like Barkley, the voters have given the edge to other defensive tackles with the final round of voting coming up next week.
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It appears as if the Giants will have representatives in the Pro Bowl, however. Kayvon Thibodeaux leads the Giants’ defensive unit with 11 sacks and is one of only 10 players in the league with double-digit takedowns. As for Bobby Okereke, he headlines the Giants with four forced fumbles.
Jamie Gillan has amassed 3,326 punt yards and has generated four touchbacks. Gillan has the second-longest punt on the year at 74 yards.
All three are in the top five in voting in their respective positions. While Barkley and Lawrence made the Pro Bowl in 2022 and were the first honorees for the Giants since 2020, Thibodeaux, Okereke, and Gillan would make the seventh in the last four seasons.
