Giants LB responds to bizarre criticism of his Week 1 performance

New York Giants linebacker Bobby Okereke had more tackles than any player in the NFL after Week 1, and the veteran has found himself having to defend the stat line.

Okereke finished with 16 total tackles (seven solo) in the Giants' 21-6 loss to the Washington Commanders last Sunday. While the numbers indicate that Okereke was all over the field, the former third-round pick faced some criticism for not making tackles sooner.

Washington rushed for 220 yards against the Giants. Detractors argued that Okereke and his teammates were not aggressive enough and failed to secure the line of scrimmage, letting Commanders rushers get to the second level too easily. Okereke was comfortable with his performance, however.

"When you’re flying around making tackles, you’re in the game and you’re tackling the ball,” Okereke told Paul Schwartz of the New York Post. “I think the quality tackle is whether you make it or miss it, whether you make the tackle at 10 yards or you make it at 5 or you make the tackle at the line of scrimmage, as long as you are decisive in your pursuit then the tackle opportunity is just wherever it presents itself."

Okereke added that it would be a different story had he been "playing hesitant" or "not getting downhill."

"For me, I feel like I was flying around,” Okereke said. “Obviously when a player has 16 tackles they’re moving out there, they’re in the flow of the game, for sure. From that standpoint I feel like I was productive. It was a decent start.”

Giants have far bigger concerns after Week 1

The Giants had a lot of problems in their loss to Washington. Russell Wilson struggled so much that there have already been calls for the team to bench him in favor of rookie Jaxson Dart, though it does not sound like head coach Brian Daboll is ready to make that move yet.

While New York's run defense made plenty of mistakes, it seems unlikely that the coaching staff viewed Okereke's 16 tackles as a Week 1 negative.