Six-Time Pro Bowler Patrick Ricard Aims to Power Up Giants' Rushing Attack

New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh has emphasized power rushing offenses, something that he intends to do in his first season with Big Blue after adding fullback Patrick Ricard to boost last year’s fifth-best rushing offense.

While the Giants haven’t always housed a fullback on their roster, Harbaugh was very familiar with how much of an impact Ricard has on an offense.

Apart from his size, Ricard has been one of the most efficient blockers at his position, meaning he could be just the right piece to help pave the way for wider rushing lanes for his teammates to earn their keep on the ground.

Patrick Ricard, FB

Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 300 lbs.
Exp: 10 Years
School: Maine
How Acquired: FA-’26

2025 in Review

When it came to his impact on the Ravens’ weekly statsheets, Ricard’s work was more prevalent in the effort he gave towards blocking for his teammate carrying the pigskin behind him.

In particular, the run protection realm, where the 10-year veteran was available for 195 rushing snaps and recorded a 70.4 run-blocking grade with only one yellow flag drawn against him, good for the second-highest efficiency among fullbacks last season.

Ricard did not perform as well when his name was called to serve as an extra pass blocker on the end of the offensive line. He allowed five pressures and got penalized twice on 79 snaps to post a 94.6 pass-blocking efficiency rating.

Beyond setting the stage for the Ravens’ backfield, Ricard did get a couple of chances to put his hands on the ball and push them closer to payday. He only logged one carry for three yards, but added to it with one catch for 8 yards.

Contract/Cap Info

Ricard, a six-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro, and the Giants put ink to paper during free agency, agreeing to a two-year, $7.63 million contract that includes $3.5 million in total guaranteed, a $2.2 million signing bonus, and another $750,000 roster bonus if he remains signed through the fifth day of the 2027 league year.

His contract makes him the highest-paid at the fullback position.

Ricard is set to receive a 2026 base salary of $1,340,000, a prorated signing bonus of $1,100,000, and a $400,000 per-game roster bonus, totaling a $2,798,824 cap hit on the franchise's books.

The Giants are excited for what Ricard will bring to their offensive game plan, but if he were to not make the roster after training camp, his release would cost the team $2,440,000 in dead money while saving them $358,824 towards the cap.

2026 Preview

The Giants are gearing up to unleash relentless power in the trenches and force opponents to respect the run.

With the uncertainty surrounding the team’s receiving corps at this stage, New York might have to make that a larger part of its game plan in the early weeks of the season, until key faces, such as Malik Nabers, return to the field to further diversify the offense.

That could mean a heavy dose of rushing formations, with Ricard playing a larger role than he has in Baltimore.

Since the 2019 season, Ricard has been present for at least 31% of his team’s offensive snaps, including his peak of 64% during the 2022 season, when the Ravens owned the NFL’s second-highest rushing yards and third-best average yards per attempt.

Last fall, the veteran fullback topped off at 41% of Baltimore’s offensive snaps, and the influx of power between him and Pro Bowl running back Derrick Henry was on full display, as the Ravens finished the year with another top 3 season in all four major rushing categories.

Seeing that level of success when Ricard is on the field and the concerning state of the receiver room and how quickly they might gel with Dart in 2026, expect that snap number to take another jump as Harbaugh falls back on his secret weapon to open the gaps for the rushing game.

The Giants were a top 5 ground attack last season, but how productive they were in certain gaps was not as impressive. They ranked 15th in the league in average gain up the middle and were even weaker on the right side of the center, with as low as 3.65 yards per attempt.

Adding the extra beef from Ricard will help to accelerate the strength of the Giants' run game, which despite it’s top-five placement in the league, struggled on runs between the tackles.

A 300-pound moving wall that played a massive part in Baltimore's perennially dominant top-3 ground game is the missing ingredient to make the Giants' top-five rushing attack even stronger.

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