In an superb situation, the Giants won’t want to rely on J.C. Davis much this season. That would imply their offensive line — and particularly Andrew Thomas — stays wholesome. That would imply they didn’t want to check their backups, not to mention a rookie picked in the sixth spherical, to see if they could shield Jaxson Dart against a regular-season protection.

But Davis made an spectacular assertion during Saturday’s preseason win against the Dolphins in Miami, when he logged all 81 snaps at left sort out and completed as the Giants’ highest-graded lineman for cross blocking (87.1) and run blocking (87.0), according to Pro Football Focus. Other starters, including proper sort out Jermaine Eluemunor, heart John Michael Schmitz and left guard Jon Runyan Jr., made cameos, as did prime backups.

But Davis — who estimated the last time he performed in an surroundings that scorching was when he attended New Mexico and they performed Texas A&M in 2023 — still discovered a manner to stand out with both his sturdiness and his efficiency.

J.C. Davis #74 of the New York Giants stands on the line of scrimmage during the first half of a preseason recreation at Hard Rock Stadium on Saturday, August 22, 2026, in Miami Gardens, Florida. Getty Images

“I think it was a great opportunity for the coaches to see my ability, what I could do at left tackle, and I think it went pretty good,” Davis said after the Giants practiced Monday. “Of course, I’ve got things to improve on, but overall, it was a good game.”

Davis said his suggestions from the Giants teaching workers has been that they “notice you” — but that he wants to preserve working. The 22-year-old, who also performed at Contra Costa (Calif.) Community College and Illinois, has tried to study from Thomas, taking everything from his preparation for practices and video games to what he does with cross units and the run recreation. Davis has tried to preserve his camp regular, he said, and enhance with each observe, but it turned inconceivable not to discover his large leap Saturday.

Coach John Harbaugh said it was a aim to check Davis in that state of affairs, to see if the rookie could log a full NFL recreation at left sort out. It was only the preseason, but it still served as a main step in Davis’ improvement, Harbaugh said. And it helped the Giants acquire some belief, too — a essential variable given how they’ve struggled to substitute Thomas (22 regular-season video games missed since the begin of 2023) the last three seasons.

And Davis, unlike Thomas, a former first-round decide, arrived with out many expectations. That makes moments like Saturday, and the potential for him to carve out a reserve function as a Day 3 draft decide, a bonus.

“J.C. doesn’t have that,” Harbaugh said of the expectations of Thomas. “He doesn’t have that layer to it that AT had, but he’s going to be expected to play a role on the team and it’s going to be a very important role — and he could be in there at any time really. So he’s got to be ready for that.”