NY Giants Add Running Back, Linebacker Depth to Roster

The New York Giants made another round of roster moves as a result of injuries to players on their 90-man roster.

The team signed linebacker K.J. Cloyd and running back Jonathan Ward, the latter move having been reported earlier on Monday.

Cloyd, 6-foot-2 and 228 pounds, entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Minnesota Vikings after the 2023 draft. He also had a brief stint last year with the Giants as a member of their practice squad and was also on the Broncos practice squad. 

Last summer with the Giants, he posted his best showing of the preseason during the team’s regular-season finale against the Jets, in which he recorded 16 of his 21 preseason tackles in that game. He has yet to take a regular-season snap in the NFL.

To make room for the two newcomers, the Giants waived/injured running back Rushawn Baker, who has a knee injury. Baker will revert to IR if he clears waivers.

The team also placed linebacker/special teams player Ty Summers on injured reserve; the nature of his injury is undisclosed. Summers was the Giants’ leader in special teams tackles last year, finishing with seven total, five of which were solo efforts. 

Summers, who began his NFL journey with the Packers as a seventh-round draft pick in 2019, had stints with the Jaguars (twice), Saints, and Lions, Detroit being the team he was with before coming to the Giants. 

Summers started two games for the Giants last season, recording 29 tackles and one pass breakup in 112 defensive snaps. The inside linebacker also finished with a 91.7 defensive coverage rating.

In six NFL seasons, Summers appeared in 83 games with three starts, finishing with 89 tackles (55 solo efforts), one tackle for loss, one fumble recovery, and zero sacks.  

The Giants, who on Monday completed their tenth practice of summer training camp, kick off their preseason schedule Saturday with a game at Buffalo before turning home to host the Jets, against whom they’ll have two joint practices next week, and then the Patriots.  

Head coach Brian Daboll has not yet announced any personnel deployment plans for Saturday’s preseason opener, but with several other players, such as receiver Darius Slayton and running back Cam Skattebo, nursing injuries, there will likely be several who are held out of action this weekend.

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