Giants Preseason Snap Counts: Who Played the Most and What Did We Learn?

The New York Giants are celebrating after a 26-3 win against the Miami Dolphins inside Hard Rock Stadium in the second week of the preseason.

The Giants mostly played their second string on both sides of the ball, but they were still able to dominate the Dolphins, who have one of the worst rosters in the league going into the 2026 season.

Regardless, the Giants get a massive boost with the win, as the confidence should trickle down the depth chart following a win like this.

Here's a look at the snap counts for each side of the ball, according to the NFL gamebook, and what to take away from the coaching staff's decisions about who to play:

Offense: J.C. Davis Goes the Distance, Jameis Winston Leads QBs

Aug 22, 2026; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; New York Giants quarterback Jameis Winston (19) leaves the field at the end of a preseason game against the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Player	Snap Count
J. Davis	81
T. Fidone	59
J. Ezeudu	47
E. Neal	43
J. Kubas	43
M. Mbow	38
A. Stinnie	38
J. Winston	38
D. Slayton	35
D. Cambre	33
O. Beckham	33
R. Miller	32
B. Hudson	31
B. Allen	31
L. Patrick	27
C. Austin III	26
R. Schernecke	26
E. Gray	25
I. Hodgins	24
X. Gipson	23
G. Finley	23
T. Tracy	22
T. Conner	19
D. Bankston	18
D. Singletary	17
J. Haener	12
B. Jaimes	12
J. Schmitz	11
M. Fields	8
J. Runyan	8
T. Johnson	5
C. Manhertz	3

The Giants didn't invest a lot of playing time with many starters, but they started sixth-round rookie J.C. Davis in the game, and he went the distance.

The offense was dominant throughout the game, playing 81 snaps compared to 36 for the Dolphins. Davis played extremely well, and his high level of visibility against the Dolphins likely secures his spot on the 53-man roster.

From the quarterbacks, Jameis Winston was the player most active with 38 offensive snaps. He drew the start for the Dolphins and immediately set the tone for the contest, which gave the Giants the green light to impose their will on Miami.

“Absolutely. You expect Jameis to play just like that. Jameis was in control. He ran the show. He's poised in the pocket,” Giants head coach John Harbaugh said.

“He was very accurate with his passing. He played at a high level just like you'd expect him to. That's a great thing to have a quarterback like that as your number two. Jameis has been a starting quarterback in this league for a long time. He's started a lot of games. I thought he played exactly the way we’d expect him to.”

Defense: Small Sample Size, But Many Impress

Player	Snap Count
C. Murphy	24
C. Golston	22
K. Kareem	22
D. Alexander	21
J. Kelly	20
M. McFadden	20
P. Adebo	20
T. Ford	19
T. Nubin	17
N. Jones	16
J. Pinnock	16
A. Washington	16
D. Banks	16
Z. Barnes	13
K. Black	13
M. Davidson	12
L. Fotu	11
A. Green	10
E. Campbell	10
R. Layne	10
A. Reese	10
B. Jamison-Travis	10
Z. Pickens	10
G. Newsome II	10
D. Muasau	6
A. Phillips	6
A. Orji	3
B. Brade	3
J. Woods	3
A. Barnes	3
B. Barten	3
U. Amadi	1

The Giants opted to keep most of their defensive starters on the sidelines for the game. The Giants only had 36 total defensive snaps, and nobody on defense played more than 24.

The starters who saw the field and are worth noting are outside linebacker Caleb Murphy, who led the way for the Giants, defensive tackle Darius Alexander, who appeared 21 times, cornerback Paulson Adebo, who was there for 20 snaps and safety Tyler Nubin, who logged 17.

Players on the defensive roster bubble made their moments count against the Giants, and it's clear that there is a lot of competition to try and make the final 53-man roster. The urgency shown against the Dolphins shows exactly where the team is, which should please Harbaugh and the coaching staff.

"Well, I mean, our guys, our younger guys, we played our backups so to speak. But
there's a lot of guys fighting for jobs on this team. And I thought they came out and they made a point to try to make their case. And they did a good job of it," Harbaugh said.

The Bottom Line

Preseason snap counts don't mean a ton in the grand scheme of everything because there still has to be production during practices and training camp. The Giants treated the joint practice and the preseason as two separate practices, which is why many of the starters didn't participate in the game.

In a dominant win, the Giants had the snap counts. That may give clues as to who has an edge in the final couple of roster spots, but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done between now and the 30-roster-cut deadline this next week. That should be the true determining factor in who makes the roster and who's heading to the practice squad.

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