Elijah Chatman is doing whatever it takes to make the 53-man roster for the New York Giants. NFL fans are taking notice, and so is the front office.
The 23-year-old rookie made quite the impression during a preseason game on Saturday!
Chatman signed with the Giants as an undrafted free agent in April after a five-year career at SMU. He is a former three-star recruit who earned a starting spot with the Mustangs as a sophomore in 2020 and finished his time in Dallas with 148 tackles, 80 pressures, 13.5 sacks and 34.5 tackles for loss. A strong senior year led him to be named as a First Team All-ACC player for good reason.
In addition to his on-field play, Chatman is a phyiscal freak. On paper, he is undersized at only 5-foot-11, 278 pounds. That doesn’t reflect his strength.
Giants defensive line coach Andre Patterson recently told the media that Chatman might be the strongest player on the team. He does dumbbell rows with 185 pounds just for a challenge and benches more than 505 pounds. His 4.85-second 40-yard dash ranks in the 90th percentile for defensive tackles and his 1.71-second 10-yard split is in the 75th percentile. As is his 31-inch vertical!
Chatman’s atypical speed and strength fits very well in defensive coordinator Shane Bowen’s aggressive system. It seemed likely that the overlooked lineman is going to get a shot to play alongside Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence and Kayvon Thibodeaux after the first few weeks of practice.
A viral chase-down tackle on Saturday should secure his spot. Chatman got on his horse and ran 40 yards downfield to make a touchdown-saving tackle on Texans running back J.J. Taylor— who casually runs a 4.61-second 40. That’s pretty crazy!!!
This is the kind of effort that earns you a roster spot. pic.twitter.com/t2kNE6bSmL
— Coach Dan Casey (@CoachDanCasey) August 18, 2024
Why wouldn’t you want a guy like that on your defensive line? Elijah Chatman deserves to make the New York Giants!