Giants' Devin Singletary prepares to replace Saquon Barkley in Week 1

New York Giants running back Devin Singletary is the type of player who adapts to his environment. Give him a task and he will complete it.

The player they call “Engine” began his NFL career as a third-round draft pick of the Buffalo Bills out of Florida Atlantic and played four solid years there.

Last year, Singletary was signed as a free agent by the up-and-coming Houston Texans and played a key role in their surprising playoff success.

This season, he was on the road again, signing a three-year, $16.5 million contract with the Giants, who had just parted ways with Saquon Barkley.

“Motor” has gone unnoticed in his five NFL seasons. In his final season with the Texans, Singletary amassed 1,091 yards from scrimmage, a career-high 898 rushing yards and 193 more receiving yards with four touchdowns.

Singletary is one of six NFL running backs with over 950 scrimmage yards in each of the last five seasons. In his only game against Minnesota in 2022 as a member of the Bills, he scored two rushing touchdowns.

Singletary feels no pressure to follow in Barkley's footsteps. In fact, he's excited about it. He even adopted Barkley's jersey number, 26, which he will wear in his Giants debut this Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings at MetLife Stadium.

“No nervousness. It's kind of controlled excitement. I try not to be too nervous. I'm ready for game day. Just excited,” Singletary told reporters Tuesday. “For me, it's playing ball. I've been doing this my whole life. So just be myself and go out there and have fun, but no pressure.”

Singletary was selected by general manager Joe Schoen to lead a backfield committee that also includes second-year running back Eric Gray and rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr. His familiarity with head coach Brian Daboll's offense from their time together in Buffalo has made the transition relatively easy.

“Yeah, it's been smooth. It's been really smooth,” Singletary said. “I know the offense, so that definitely helps. I knew a lot of the guys here. That helped too. And as far as the running back room, those guys have been great. I think we're ready to go. Even though they're young, like you said, they're definitely ready to go.”

The Giants will see what life is like without Barkley this Sunday, and considering the attitude and optimism of “Motor,” everything seems to be going well.