Cam Skattebo has spent the offseason proving his ankle can survive an NFL season again. On Saturday at Fanatics Fest, he decided to test that theory with a backflip, and it did not go well. He came up short on the landing, stumbled backward and hit the deck in front of a crowd that already had one eye on his surgically repaired right ankle the whole time.
The clip of Skattebo's failed backflip immediately made the rounds, with fans begging him to take it easy.
Some context on why this made everyone's stomach drop: Skattebo dislocated his right ankle and suffered an open tibia fracture during the Giants' loss to the Eagles last season, an injury serious enough to require emergency surgery that night. He's spent months rehabbing back toward a Week 1 target, and by all accounts the recovery has been going well. Then he goes and free-styles a WWE-style entrance, backflip included, at a fan convention.
Naturally, Adam Schefter picked up the story, reporting that Skattebo said he's perfectly fine despite appearing to land awkwardly on the same ankle that just went through reconstructive surgery. That's the kind of headline that makes fantasy managers and Giants fans alike want to reach through the screen.
Adam Schefter's report framed the stunt as a real risk to a recovery that had otherwise been on track.
Giants RB Cam Skattebo said he’s perfectly fine after failing to land a backflip and appearing to land awkwardly on his surgically repaired right ankle during an appearance at Fanatics Fest on Saturday. https://t.co/CrgySiTQin
Skattebo isn't exactly backing off the bit, either. Asked about the backflips afterward, he insisted, "I will not hurt myself before the season," playing it off like a guy who knows exactly what he's doing.
Skattebo brushed off the concern, insisting the stunt wasn't putting his season at risk.
And when the internet piled on anyway, he leaned all the way into it, telling anyone worried about his decision-making to essentially get over it. It's the same defiant energy that made him a fan favorite as a rookie, but it's a much riskier look now that his health is the swing factor for the Giants' backfield.
Skattebo's response to the backlash was to double down rather than walk it back.
None of this changes the fact that Skattebo looked good doing drills earlier in camp buildup and was reportedly trending toward a Week 1 return. But a botched backflip on the exact ankle that ended his rookie season is the kind of self-inflicted scare that turns a clean recovery story into a watch-list item, right as training camp gets going.