Joshua Ezeudu wanted to make sure the emotions stuck with him.
And more importantly, to prevent them from ever being felt again.
The Giants’ offensive lineman was disconsolate after the team’s humiliating 24-3 “Monday Night Football” loss to the Seahawks.
Filling in at left tackle for the third straight game for the injured Andrew Thomas, Ezeudu was part of an offensive line that was manhandled in surrendering a franchise-worst 11 sacks, acting as turnstiles in front of a national television audience.
Still wearing all his pads and in full uniform, Ezeudu sat and faced his locker for the duration of the media’s time in the locker room, staring forward blankly in thought.
Teammates at times came over and shared messages of support for Ezeudu, who could barely react.
But for Ezeudu, whom the Giants drafted in the third round last year, it was the only reaction that was warranted.
“After a loss, if you’re not feeling any type of way, then you shouldn’t be here or you shouldn’t be playing sports,” Ezeudu said. “I feel like taking in how you feel after a loss really makes it stick, and then it only gives you more motivation. You don’t want to feel how you felt, and we all feel how we felt after the loss.”
Ezeudu gave up three sacks, four pressures and one quarterback hurry in 52 pass-blocking snaps in Monday’s loss, according to Pro Football Focus, who gave him a 54.3 overall grade for the game.
“I hope everybody would be down,” Daboll said about Ezeudu’s reaction. “It’s no fun to lose, and he works extremely hard. He’s a good young player that has some upside, and we’ll continue to work with him. He cares a lot about his craft, he works extremely hard, and I enjoy working with him.”
Thomas (hamstring) was ruled out for the Giants’ Week 5 clash against the Dolphins in Miami on Sunday, meaning Ezeudu is again in line to start at left tackle.
Though he played both guard and tackle in college, Ezeudu was primarily on the interior at North Carolina and in his early days with the Giants.
During training camp, Ezeudu was part of a three-man rotation competing for two starting guard spots.
But he quickly found himself protecting Daniel Jones’ blind side, part of a floundering offensive line that is desperately looking for answers.
“It’s a learning process,” Ezeudu said. “As long as I keep on getting better every single week, playing tackle in this league for the first time is a challenge like no other.
“The mood, everybody is just staying very constant. Because in this league, in this world, in life really, you can’t get too up or you can’t get too down. We know, though, there’s work we need to do. We know that we’re capable of everything that everyone says we are not.”
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