Jermaine Eluemunor isn’t going to apologize for his confidence.
The Giants right tackle drew criticism this week for comments made Tuesday on WFAN about his matchup last game with Steelers star T.J. Watt.
“I was on an island with him for a majority of the game. And he didn‘t do a damn thing. I’m not going to sit here and frickin’ sing his praises,” Eluemunor said after Watt finished with two sacks and a forced fumble. “He didn’t do anything for 3 ½ quarters and had one impact play.”
J.J. Watt, T.J.’s older brother, fired back at Eluemunor as a guest on the “Pat McAfee Show,” saying: “I mean, what are we doing here, man? You gave up a strip-sack that lost the game.”
A film review of 14 plays where Eluemunor was left 1-on-1 to block Watt showed one quarterback hit after the throw, one sack when Daniel Jones left the pocket to scramble and one strip-sack. On the strip-sack, Jones took the blame for missing the signal to motion the tight end over to double-team Watt.
“I’m over it. I’m moving on to [facing] Washington,” Eluemunor told The Post. “If people want to talk about that one play and judge that game off of one play, they can. Other than the one confusion and the quarterback hit when I overset it, I stand by what I said. I watched the tape. Time for us to move onto Washington and get this ship righted.”
Eluemunor was playing through a hip injury but talked last week about welcoming the challenge of being on an island with Watt, a former NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
The Giants had to chip-block on the other side, where left tackle Chris Hubbard allowed 12 pressures and six quarterback hits in his first start of the season.
“The one thing that’s missed in all this is what, do you expect me to just lay down because I’m going against such and such?” Eluemunor said. “No, I’m always going to be confident. That’s not going to change. Doesn’t matter who I’m going against in football or life. I have been at rock bottom, where my confidence was as low as it can get. I’m not going to sit here worried about shaking my boots, staying up at night.”
Pro Football Focus only charged Eluemunor with one sack allowed against the Steelers — his second in eight games. He has stabilized the right tackle position after years of Jones facing pressure in his face.
“Confidence breeds success. Success breeds confidence,” Eluemunor said. “If people don’t like that, they don’t like that. If they want to interpret it, they can. I’m going to do what I need to do on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays to back it up.”
Coach Brian Daboll said the plan at left tackle will be “similar to what it was last week.”
In theory, that means rotating veteran Hubbard and Josh Ezeudu during practices before Sunday’s game against the Commanders.
But Ezeudu was sidelined Wednesday after he had his “knee drained,” Daboll said.
The rest of the injury report includes RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. (concussion), LB Matt Adams (knee), WR Bryce Ford-Wheaton (Achilles), P Jamie Gillan (left hamstring), DT Dexter Lawrence (rest day) and PR Ihmir Smith Marsette (ankle) — all of whom did not practice.
Tracy was on the side of the field working with trainers in the “early stages” of the protocol.
Eluemunor (hip), LB Brian Burns (Achilles/biceps), CB Cor’Dale Flott (groin), CB Tre Hawkins (ankle), CB Adoree’ Jackson (neck), OL Jake Kubas (abdomen), C John Michael Schmitz (calf) and LB Ty Summers (ankle) were limited participants.
Undrafted rookie offensive tackles Garret Greenfield and Marcellus Johnson signed to the practice squad. It is Johnson’s second Giants stint.
