Osi Umenyiora sees himself in Kayvon Thibodeaux
When the Giants selected Kayvon Thibodeaux with the No. 5 overall pick, it became the first time the franchise drafted an edge rusher in the first round since Jason Pierre-Paul was taken 15th in the 2010 NFL Draft.
Pierre-Paul was a part of one of the franchise’s best groups of pass rushers. During the team’s epic championship run in 2011, Pierre-Paul joined Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka and Osi Umenyiora to create a combination of edge rushers that caused nightmares for opposing quarterbacks.
Umenyiora, who picked up 3.5 sacks during those 2011 playoffs, told Paul Schwartz of the New York Post that he sees a lot of himself in Thibodeaux.
“He wouldn’t be anything like JPP, he doesn’t remind me of Kiwi, doesn’t remind me of Tuck, doesn’t remind me of [Michael] Strahan, actually,” Umenyiora told The Post. “Yeah, you’re right, he’s more like myself.”
Umenyiora played in 129 regular season games with the Giants from 2003 to 2012. The franchise legend recorded 75.0 sacks during that span, good for the sixth-most in Giants history, along with a franchise-high 32 forced fumbles.
The London native helped the Giants take home two Super Bowl titles (XLII, XLVI) and was later inducted into the franchise’s Ring of Honor.
The Giants hope that Thibodeaux and 2021 second-round pick Azeez Ojulari can combine to help generate a pass rush similar to that of the Big Blue defense from Umenyiora’s playing days.
“I like him as a player for sure,” Umenyiora said about Thibodeaux. “Very dynamic football player. He’s strong against the run, which for a college pass rusher of his caliber, you don’t really see that. Strong, quick first step, good bend around the edge, good pass-rush moves, good speed, good motor.
“The way he plays, the way he rushes the passer I think you would say he has a very similar game and a very similar skill set to what I did, for sure. I like him as a player, I do.”