New York Giants continue to back fumble-prone return man

The last two seasons, the New York Giants have been searching for a top kick returner. 10 different players have returned kickoffs for Big Blue over that span, most notably Gunner Olszewski, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, and Eric Gray.

The Giants cut Smith-Marsette before the season, despite running one back 99 yards for a touchdown in Week 16 last year. Olszewski became the primary this season when Gray was placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list in the spring with a knee injury.

Gray was activated off PUP to the active roster last week and resumed his prior role at returner, with Olzewski needed on offense with the Giants thin at wide receiver.

Gray played in all 17 games last season, returning 21 kickoffs for 554 yards. His 26.4 yards per return average placed him second in the league among qualified returners. He did have three fumbles, however, once again raising questions about his ability to secure the football.

Add that to his three fumbles as a rookie in 2023, and you can see why fans would have an issue with Gray playing such a volatile and important position.

On Friday, special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial told reporters the reasoning why Gray, a backup running back, was reinstated to the top returner role.

"He's had a ton of experience doing it. He's a running back that's used to carrying the ball. He understands the vision, how to set up blocks," said Ghobrial.

But Gray continued to have issues in his season debut on Sunday in Detroit. He had a 26-yard return and a 15-yarder, which he initially muffed, giving the Giants possession on their own 18-yard line with a little over two minutes remaining in the first half.

"Although that was his first game, he obviously wants that one return back," Ghobrial said. "I know after that mistake was made, he came up to me apologizing. I'm like you don't have to apologize, you've just got to make it right, and part of making it right is his intent and his deliberation in practice. If you saw him the other day, it was him on the Jugs getting a ton of catches to make sure he's catching that ball forward, ball security drills, all those things."

Still, the Giants have enough issues when it comes to giving games away this year. They don't need to start faltering on special teams as well.

This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: New York Giants continue to back fumble-prone return man