New York Giants 2024 Training Camp Preview: QB Tommy DeVito
Tommy DeVito wasn’t supposed to play the role of hero last year. Hek, he wasn’t even supposed to see the field for that matter.
But no one told Cedar Grove, New Jersey’s finest that. DeVito, who went undrafted out of Illinois and who was thought to be a year-long practice squad “project,” worked at his craft to get to a point that when injuries struck down starter Daniel Jones and backup Tyrod Taylor, the Giants went with DeVito over Matt Barkley, a quarterback who not only had NFL playing experience but with whom head coach Brian Daboll was familiar from their time together in Buffalo.
DeVito, who was barely asked to throw the ball in his NFL debut against the Jets after Taylor went down with an injury, then went on to capture the hearts and imaginations of football fans everywhere.
He stepped in for Jones in Week 9 after the starter was lost for the season with a torn ACL, but that game and the ensuing one at Dallas were lopsided losses.
Suddenly, the man nicknamed “Tommy Cutlets” for his love of the Italian staple went on a three-game winning streak that included an impressive upset of the Green Bay Packers in primetime.
DeVito, with his “Italian pinch” touchdown celebration, which went on to win the Bd Light Celebration of the Year at the NFL honors, was suddenly a household name thanks to his keeping the Giants’ slim playoff hopes alive and the sudden demand for him in marketing ventures.
Alas for him, things came crashing back down to earth in a 24-6 loss to the Saints. The following week, on Christmas day, DeVito was benched at halftime in what would be a 33-25 loss to the hated Eagles.
The next time DeVito saw the field was in the regular-season finale at home against the Eagles, when he completed both his pass attempts for 14 yards.
DeVito finished with a 4-5 record as a starter, having completed 14 of 178 pass attempts for 1,101 yards, eight touchdowns, and three interceptions. More importantly, he earned the right to compete for a backup job in 2024.
TOMMY DEVITO, QB
Height: 6-2
Weight: 210 lbs.
Exp.: 2 Years
School: Illinois
How Acquired: UDFA-23
2023 in Review
The 25-year-old DeVito might not have finished his first season with a winning record as a starter, but there were some things to like in his stint. One highlight was the 31-19 victory vs. Washington in which he finished 18 of 26 for 246 yards, three touchdowns, and no turnovers, absorbing a season-high nine sacks.
That performance right there pretty much told the story of DeVito’s first season. He was overly cautious with the ball and thus didn’t turn it over, which was good. But it was also bad because he often held the ball far too long, resulting in his taking a sack or a hit when simply throwing the ball away would have made more sense (and saved lost yardage).
DeVito went 3-3 in his six starts with an 8-3 TD-INT ratio on the season. He injected some much-needed fun and life into a moribund offense, but his lack of experience caught up to him when the clock struck midnight on his Cinderella run.
But in that short stretch, we learned a lot about DeVito. For one, he has an NFL arm and can throw almost every pass. He never looked like a deer caught in the headlights, and he gave off enough positive vibes to think that with more experience, he could, at the very least, be a decent backup in this league for a long time and a guy who could win a team a few games at that.
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Contract/Cap Info
DeVito is in Year 2 of his UDFA contract and is due to earn $916,000 this season (not counting his growing number of marketing opportunities, which thankfully don’t count against the cap). If DeVito were to be cut, he wouldn’t cost the Giants any dead money.
2024 Preview
DeVito is in a favorable position right now, as the off-season pretty much fell his way. For one, the Giants didn’t draft a quarterback–had they done so, DeVito almost certainly would have had an uphill battle to make the team behind Jones, new backup Drew Lock, and the rookie.
But what no one is talking about is that DeVito may very well continue to benefit from Jones’s ACL injury. The feeling is that Jones, who is on schedule in his rehab, might not play at all in the preseason to avoid any risk of re-injury. If that is indeed the case, figure out that Lock and DeVito will handle the snaps at quarterback, and for DeVito, if he has indeed improved from last season, that’s a good thing.
Getting a chunk of playing time this summer will allow DeVito to put fresh film out there for the other 31 NFL teams. And if he shows improvement, he might force the Giants to carry him as a third quarterback, especially if there are any remaining lingering doubts about Jones’s knee by Week 1.
For DeVito to outlast Nathan Rourke, who appears to be his biggest competition, he needs to show that he has a better grasp on the complexities of NFL defenses and that he’s no longer overwhelmed.
PATRICIA TRAINA
Patricia Traina has covered the New York Giants for over three decades for various media outlets. She is the host of the Locked On Giants podcast and the author of "The Big 50: New York Giants: The Men and Moments that Made the New York Giants" (Triumph Books, September 2020). View Patricia's full bio.