Why John Harbaugh Leans on Fullback Patrick Ricard in the Giants' Run Game

New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh is the very definition of “old school.”

So it should come as no surprise that the veteran head coach tends to favor some old-school style philosophies, such as a power running game led by a fullback, usually a big, burly type whose primary job is to get his hands dirty in the run game by blowing open holes for the running backs to power through.

That’s the reason Harbaugh wanted Patrick Ricard, his fullback for nine years with the Baltimore Ravens, in New York.

“Because the jobs and the roles that he's being asked to play are built into our offense,” Harbaugh said when asked about carrying a fullback.

“Not everybody has those, but a lot of people do. And sometimes people do them with different types of guys. (49ers fullback) Kyle Juszczyk—we had him at one time. Look at what he's done. He does a lot of the same jobs that Pat does, but just in a different way.”

Interestingly, roughly half of the teams in the league carry the position, while fewer than that actually deploy it consistently as the Giants do under Harbaugh.

The 32-year-old Ricard is off to a great start in his role with Big Blue. According to NFL+, Ricard was part of 48.5% of the Giants' plays in their Week 1 win over the Dallas Cowboys, Big Blue’s highest percentage for a fullback since 2018.

If the Giants keep up that pace, that would put Ricard on course for a new single season high of over 600 snaps, which would top the 554 snaps he had in 2021 with the Ravens.

The temptation for the Giants to deploy Ricard on a heavy weekly basis certainly could be there given the results. With Ricard leading the way for the running backs in the Giants’ Week 1 win over Dallas, Big Blue had 43 rushing yards on 11 attempts.

For some teams, carrying a fullback who, as a rule, usually doesn’t touch the ball is a roster luxury. Instead, they deploy a tight end to do the work of the fullback, often with a degree of success.

But for true smashmouth offenses like what Harbaugh prefers to run, there is no substitute for the real thing.

“Pat does his thing his way, and there's some things that I'm sure some of the Juszczyks of the world can do, maybe better, if you want to call it that,” Harbaugh said.

“But there's a lot of things that Pat can do that nobody else can do. Nobody in the world can do some of the things that Pat Ricard can do. And that's good for us. It helps us be who we are.”

That identity is pure old-fashioned bully ball, a persona that tells opponents to be prepared to get into it in the trenches.

Ricard, in Harbaugh’s eyes, is an essential part of that desired identity.

“We love that about him as a player, and we love having that chance to take advantage of all the guys' unique abilities if we can,” he said.

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