New York Giants OLB Quincy Roche No Stranger to Fighting Uphill Battle for Reps

Quincy Roche was an intriguing player for the Giants last year. But will there be room for him on the roster this year?

Author:
Patricia Traina
Publish date:
Aug 4, 2022 2:43 PM EDT

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Fighting an uphill battle is nothing new for New York Giants edge rusher Quincy Roche.

Roche, originally drafted in the sixth round by the Pittsburgh Steelers last year, went through his first NFL training camp with the Black and Gold, tying for second on the team with 1.5 sacks and finishing with five tackles in 101 preseason snaps.

But because of the numbers, there was no room on the Steelers’ roster for Roche, who, after playing three years of college ball at Temple, finished his college tenure with the Miami Hurricanes, Roche was among the Steelers' final roster cuts when the Steelers sought to get down to the 53-man roster limit.

Hoping to retain the budding pass rusher, the Steelers reportedly intended to sign Roche to their practice squad. What they didn’t count on, however, was the Giants, who had an interest in Roche during the draft process, putting in a successful waiver claim.

For Roche, who said the Steelers defense was “a lot different” than what the Giants ran last year, he had to start from scratch, a particularly difficult challenge since he didn’t have the benefit of the spring and summer to thoroughly learn the team’s playbook.

To his credit, Roche dove right in, determined to hit the ground running and be ready for when his number was called.

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“It wasn't easy,” Roche told Giants Country. “But that's a big testament to the guys on the team who helped bring me along. It's a really close group around here, so they kind of helped me every step of the way, telling me things I didn’t know—'Hey, you got this,’ or ‘You got that.’ So over time, I started to feel more comfortable and confident.”

As a situational pass rusher in the Giants' defense, Roche played 401 regular season snaps, finishing with 35 tackles (21 solos), 2.5 sacks (tying him with defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence II), five tackles for a loss, and five quarterback hits to go along with three special teams tackles.

“In terms of last year, I was just super appreciative to get the opportunity, to be able to show what I had,” Roche said. “I kind of earned a role within the team and tried to find my niche and fit in.”

Like many of his teammates, Roche loves the new defensive system implemented by coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale, which he said makes it easier on the defensive players. “There’s a lot more freedom-wise,” he said. “It's a lot tougher for the o-line to figure out what we're doing.

“It's never easy in the league because everybody's so good, but when you have more freedom, and the scheme makes life easier. So I'm excited about what this defense will bring with this defense has to offer this season.”

The new coaching staff has also given the players a clean slate. But with that clean slate, there have been some tweaks to the edge rusher position. The Giants added Kayvon Thibodeaux to the mix and have been leaning heavily on Elerson Smith, their fourth-round draft pick last year, to form a pass-rushing trio with Azeez Ojulari, currently on the NFI list.

That has left Roche to compete with guys like Oshane Ximines for a spot at the bottom of the depth chart, a competition that, based on the current rep allocation, appears to have Ximines ahead of Roche.

Roche shrugged when asked about facing another uphill battle, saying that he could only control what he can control.

“If I can control those things in my reach, everything else takes care of itself,” he said. “You just show up daily with a good attitude and effort, and everything else will sort itself out.”