J.C. Davis quietly making waves with Giants despite being sixth-round pick

In an ideal scenario, the Giants won’t need to rely on J.C.Davis much this season.

That would mean their offensive line — and specifically Andrew Thomas — stays healthy.That would mean they didn’t need to test their backups, let alone a rookie picked in the sixth round, to see if they could protect Jaxson Dart against a regular-season defense.

Get texts from Paul Schwartz with all the latest Giants news and insights, exclusive to Sports+ subscribers.But Davis made an impressive statement during Saturday’s preseason win against the Dolphins in Miami, when he logged all 81 snaps at left tackle and finished as the Giants’ highest-graded lineman for pass blocking (87.1) and run blocking (87.0), according to Pro Football Focus.

Other starters, including right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor, center John Michael Schmitz and left guard Jon Runyan Jr., made cameos, as did top backups.But Davis — who estimated the last time he played in an environment that hot was when he attended New Mexico and they played Texas A&M in 2023 — still found a way to stand out with both his durability and his performance.“I think it was a great opportunity for the coaches to see my ability, what I could do at left tackle, and I think it went pretty good,” Davis said after the Giants practiced Monday.“Of course, I’ve got things to improve on, but overall, it was a good game.”Davis said his feedback from the Giants coaching staff has been that they “notice you” — but that he needs to keep working.

The 22-year-old, who also played at Contra Costa (Calif.) Community College and Illinois, has tried to learn from Thomas, taking everything from his preparation for practices and games to what he does with pass sets and the run game.Davis has tried to keep his camp steady, he said, and improve with each practice, but it became impossible not to notice his massive leap Saturday.Coach John Harbaugh said it was a goal to test Davis in that situation, to see if the rook...