Rashad Jennings Emerging as New York Giants' Bell-Cow Back

This is the kind of production the New York Giants envisioned when they signed running back Rashad Jennings to a four-year, $10 million contract this past offseason. 

Jennings set new career highs in both rushing attempts (34) and rushing yardage (176), while scoring his first touchdown before the home crowd (and his second of the season) in New York’s 30-17 win over the Houston Texans.

“There’s no question. It picks everybody up at every position,” head coach Tom Coughlin said when asked about Jennings at his postgame press conference.  

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Jennings, who last week had the costly turnover deep in Arizona Cardinals territory on a play in which he wasn’t even touched, smiled and faced the music every time he was asked about that miscue by a reporter in the days leading up to this weekend's game. 

“It is frustrating. I wish I could rewind the tape, but I can’t,” he said. “Just like life, mistakes happen. You learn from it. You see what you could have done differently, and you make strides that it doesn’t happen again.”

He must have learned his lesson well during those late film sessions, because from the moment he took his first handoff from quarterback Eli Manning, it was clear to see the "want-to" in his demeanor.

Inspiration

Jennings, who wants people to view him as a complete back, made sure that this week, his performance was part of the solution and not part of the problem  

And so he used a personal source to motivate him, his father Albert Jennings, a story that caused the buzz in the postgame press conference room to fall silent.

Albert Jennings, you see, is a diabetic who had both of his legs amputated as a result of the disease. While he was not at MetLife Stadium to witness his son's outstanding performance, he was at home in Virginia watching intently on television. 

We'll let Jennings take it from here. 

"Speaking to my teammates, we pray before every game. In leading the prayer (Sunday), I just kind of reminded the guys before we walked out on the field—whatever reason you play this game, play like that.

Whether it’s a child with cancer that you want to motivate—play that way; to prove somebody wrong—play that way. If it’s to play for this team—play that way; if it’s because your grandma’s watching—play that way.

"Today I was just reminded my father has diabetes, and he ended up getting both of his legs amputated. He doesn’t have legs so I remembered that I do have them so I played that way. You’ve got to find a different motivation outside this game to push you. Simply playing football, playing to my best ability is how I say, ‘Thank you,’ to God for giving me this talent."

That Jennings was able to find his motivation to bounce back from last week’s heartbreaking showing shows the resiliency in this 29-year-old running back who likes to remind people that, at one time, he was an overweight, geeky kid with a grade-point average that would have rivaled the 0.6 passer rating number Houston Texans quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick posted in the first half.   

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Jennings' resolve to put last week's difficult showing behind him bodes well for the Giants moving forward, according to head coach Tom Coughlin, who wants to see his offense strive for balance between the run and the pass.

“To be able to run the ball and be able to throw play-action passes is critical, really, to the success of an offensive team,” he said. “When that is going and you have that versatility, it’s also a safer way to throw the ball.”

Coughlin isn't kidding. In their first two games this season, the Giants rushed for 53 and 81 yards respectively, both losing efforts.

Going back to last year, the Giants have lost nine games when they have failed to run for at least 100 yards collectively, which was likely a big reason why adding a running back of Jennings' caliber was a high priority for the front office.  

There's so much more, though, to like about Jennings besides his potential to produce the necessary yardage in order to move the chains.

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Pass Protection

As previously noted, Jennings wants people to view him as an every-down back who can do it all. Though he wasn’t asked to be a receiver this week, he did play another very important role in the offensive game plan, one which won’t be reflected on the stat sheet, however.  

Facing an aggressive Texans' defensive front, it was all hands on deck for not just the offensive line but also for the backs and tight ends, all of whom would be called upon to provide chip blocking to slow down the Houston rush.

They got the job done, limiting that Houston defensive front to one sack.

Jennings was as big of a contributor to that accomplishment as was the offensive line, and Manning knew it.

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“I think they did a good job,” Manning said of the running backs’ blitz pickup. “We had a 3rd-and-long and hit Preston Parker on the right sideline when they came with a blitz. I can’t remember whether it was Rashad or Andre [Williams] who picked up the blitz. I thought they were keying in on everything, and they did a good job.”

For the record, it was Jennings who picked up the blitz, as Manning will learn when he watches the tape on Monday. In fact, Jennings was simply superb in this regard the entire game.

The play in question that Manning spoke about was a 13-yard pickup by receiver Preston Parker in the second quarter on the Giants’ first scoring drive.

On the play, a 3rd-and-11, the Texans sent the blitz. Jennings chipped a defender, buying Manning more time to scan the field.

The quarterback then found receiver Preston Parker, who had done a nice job running his route beyond the first-down marker, for the 13-yard gain and the first-down conversion.

Two plays later, the Giants were on the board, thanks to a Manning touchdown pass to receiver Victor Cruz to make it 7-0.

The Concern

As noted in a preseason article assessing whether Jennings could be the glue that holds the Giants offense together, the primary concern with Jennings is his injury history.

Jennings has yet to play a 16-game season in his career. While he is a known fitness fanatic who takes ridiculously good care of his body, no one is immune from injury, as punter Steve Weatherford, who's currently nursing an ankle injury, will attest to.

That's why it's probably unrealistic for the team to ask Jennings to be that every-down back who carries the ball 34 times per game moving forward.

Currently, Jennings, who thus far has 68 carries for 286 yards, is on pace for 362 carries for the season. That’s a heavy load for one man to carry, especially when that one man is hit on every play.

That’s not to say that Jennings can’t last the season, but it would probably behoove the Giants to spread the ball around to other weapons to ensure that Jennings, who is clearly one of the offense’s most important assets, makes it through the rest of the year. 

Patricia Traina is the senior editor for Inside Football. Salary and contract information via Over the Cap. All quotes and other information obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow me on Twitter, @Patricia_Traina.