The New York Giants began organized team activities (OTAs) this week in East Rutherford, New Jersey, with plenty of new faces on the roster.
Quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston were both acquired via free agency and could end up starting for the Giants in 2025. There’s also the team’s second first-round pick, Jaxson Dart, who could be in line for a bigger role as the season wears on.
Dart was the first of multiple selections on offense by the Giants in the 2025 NFL Draft. After New York took Dart in Round 1, the Giants selected running back Cam Skattebo in Round 4, offensive lineman Marcus Mbow in Round 5 and tight end Thomas Fidone II in Round 7.
Skattebo wasn’t sure he’d be taken by the Giants in the draft. In fact, he thought a different NFC team would come calling for his services.
“I actually thought I was going to go to San Francisco with that 100th pick,” Skattebo said on the May 28 episode of the “St. Brown Podcast”. “(But) no phone call.”
The 49ers ended up taking Western Kentucky cornerback Upton Stout with the 100th overall pick, the third-to-last selection of Day 2.
“So we woke up, 9 a.m. the next morning on Saturday and we knew it was going to be within the first 10 picks because the 49ers, Giants, Tennessee and somebody else had another pick back-to-back-to-back,” Skattebo said. “And I knew one of those teams was going to take me. I didn’t know which one and then the Giants called and emotions poured.”
He didn’t have to wait long on Day 3. New York selected him with the third pick of the day at No. 105 overall.
“I actually thought I was going to go to San Francisco with that 100th pick.”
Cam Skattebo reflects on his NFL Draft experience where the 49ers, the team he grew up cheering for, passed on him before the Giants selected him at pick 105 🏈 pic.twitter.com/C4uQ9KiLg8
— St. Brown Podcast (@StBrownPodcast) May 28, 2025
Skattebo was the eighth running back taken in the 2025 NFL Draft, one pick after the Jacksonville Jaguars selected Virginia Tech’s Bhayshul Tuten.
San Francisco did end up drafting a running back on Day 3 with Oregon’s Jordan James in the fifth round, No. 147 overall.
A total of 25 running backs were selected in the 2025 NFL Draft, the fifth-most of any position. Wide receiver had the most picks with 31 followed by defensive tackle (30), cornerback (29), linebacker (26) and running back.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Giants RB Cam Skattebo thought 49ers were drafting him