Bill Belichick blasted Josh Ezeudu earlier this week, while criticizing general manager Joe Schoen.
On Thursday, Ezeudu responded diplomatically — though with conviction — as he keeps trying, the best he can, to replace elite left tackle Andrew Thomas.
Ezeudu — a 2022 third-round draft pick who has mostly struggled in the NFL — wasn’t aware of Belichick’s comments until Thursday.
Here’s what Belichick said on ESPN about Ezeudu, as he ripped the Giants’ offensive line plan: “They’re playing a guy at left tackle that shouldn’t be playing left tackle.”
So what does Ezeudu think about that?
“He’s entitled to his own opinion,” Ezeudu told NJ Advance Media. “He’s a former coach, now I guess a commentator and analyst. So everybody is entitled to their own opinion. People have probably said things about him that he doesn’t care about.”
Do Belichick’s comments light a fire under Ezeudu? Not really, Ezeudu said.
“This whole time, I’ve been trying to focus on myself — what I know I can be,” he said. “I know what I can be. And I know what I am going to be. So at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.”
The Giants drafted Ezeudu to be a guard. But then they slotted him at left tackle last season after Thomas’ Week 1 hamstring injury. Ezeudu struggled through five starts before a Week 6 toe injury ended his season.
After Thomas’ 2024 season ended due to foot surgery, the Giants again turned to Ezeudu, beginning with Sunday’s home game against the Eagles. They wound up losing 28-3, as Daniel Jones was sacked seven times. Ezeudu gave up two of them.
But he settled down after his second sack allowed and wound up finishing with a 65.6 Pro Football Focus pass blocking grade, with three total pressures allowed (a hurry plus those two sacks). Ezeudu graded worse as a run blocker (46.9).
There’s a good chance the 2-5 Giants start Ezeudu at left tackle again in Monday night’s game at the Steelers, who have future Hall of Fame pass rusher T.J. Watt. Fortunately for Ezeudu, Watt lines up across from the right tackle — so he will be Jermaine Eluemunor’s problem.
After Ezeudu watched his Eagles tape, he felt more encouraged than he initially was during the game.
“I started off the game pretty poorly,” he said. “After that, I stopped overthinking stuff, and I was like, ‘Bro, this is football. I’ve been playing it this whole time.’ I think I settled in really well.”
Ezeudu said this happened after his second sack.
“That first sack was really like, ‘All right, I got beat,’” he said. “But the second sack was more like I was focusing on, just because I got beat, that’s why I’m not playing how I’m [supposed to be] playing. Everybody is going to get beat. It doesn’t matter who you are. Nobody is perfect. So I can’t try to chase that perfection.”
What did he tell himself after that second sack?
“My teammates and coaches, they all have confidence in me,” he said, recounting his thoughts at that moment. “So if people around me have confidence in me, then there’s no reason why I should lack confidence in myself.”
Ezeudu said that mindset “helped a lot” for the rest of the game — and he felt himself playing better after that. And even though the Giants got crushed by the Eagles, Ezeudu came away from the game with some positive thoughts.
“Just the ability to bounce back,” he said. “Because nobody wants to give up a sack. Nobody wants to get the quarterback hit. Nobody wants to miss a block. But it’s going to happen. If it happens, you can’t be stuck on that play for the rest of the game. There’s still 60 more plays out there. Also, the ability to start faster — and start with more confidence.”
At the beginning of Sunday’s game, Ezeudu’s overthinking made replacing Thomas a more daunting process than it needed to be. He doesn’t want to repeat that mistake.
“I made it more difficult than what it is,” he said. “I started just thinking about how a year ago, I was hurt [with the toe injury] and now I’m starting again. I started overthinking about a whole bunch of things that in reality don’t have anything to do with what I’m about to do now.”
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Darryl Slater may be reached at [email protected].
