Giants unleash modern twist on legendary 'NASCAR' pass rush package
Giants linebacker Abdul Carter reacts during a game against the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 13, 2026. Credit: Ed Murray
The great Giants teams of the past were built on the backs of elite defenses — mainly, dominant pass rushers who wrecked backfields and stopped the run.
These current Giants want to meet that standard. Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson talks about having a defense that is fast and violent. That’s what made Sunday night’s game eye-catching when the defense lined up on third downs.
Brian Burns and Abdul Carter lined up on the edge and fellow linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux entered the game to play inside with Chauncey Golston. Defensive tackles DJ Reader and Shelby Harris were pulled off the field.
Four pass rushers. One mission. Turn them loose to either bring down the quarterback or fluster him and get him to make mistakes.
Rev up the engines, because the Giants’ old NASCAR package could be back in full force.
Why deploy it? It’s all about personnel, Wilson said. The Giants’ pass rush is his defense’s strength, so why not lean heavily into it?
“I like the versatility in all those guys,” Wilson said. “As we progress, Thibs might have a better matchup on a guard. He might have a better matchup on a tackle. It could be Arvell [Reese, an inside linebacker]. It could be Burns. So we have flexibility.”
It stirred echoes of the famed NASCAR package that the Giants rode to their last two Super Bowl titles.
In 2007, then-defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo often played four pass rushers, utilizing Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora and Mathias Kiwanuka.
Four years later, defensive coordinator Perry Fewell revived it with Jason Pierre-Paul replacing Strahan.
The result? Another championship.
Nobody’s expecting this year’s Giants to do that right now, but they have more than four capable rushers after Reese was drafted this past spring, giving Wilson more options to mix and match as the schedule resumes Monday against the Rams.
The players are all for it, especially Golston, who has played on the interior since he was in college.
“It’s been really smooth since we all play the same position,” Golston told Newsday. “It’s easier to work off of each other because you usually know what people are thinking. We’ve been doing a lot of communicating, so nothing’s too much of a surprise when we get out there and things happen.”
One wonders what that could mean for Thibodeaux. He’s in the final year of his rookie contract, and for edge rushers, sacks get you paid more than pressures. There are fewer chances for that with Burns and Carter set as starters.
One also could assume that playing more inside makes it harder to get sacks. It means fully settling into a new role after playing edge in his first four seasons.
However, Thibodeaux doesn’t think it will be a problem nor a challenge as he tries to make an impact on the field.
“I wouldn’t say it’s too much different, but you’re closer to the quarterback,” Thibodeaux said in August about the role. “So it is, I would say, a little bit more opportunities [to get sacks].”
He backed that up Sunday. It was Thibodeaux’s pressure on a third-and-5 late in the first half that chased Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott backward and led to an interception by Jevon Holland.
So perhaps a new role could reinforce his value to the Giants after he was mentioned in trade rumors since last season. General manager Joe Schoen, who denied having any trade conversations about Thibodeaux during the draft, said in July that he’ll be a key part of this team.
If he can be effective in this NASCAR 2.0 package, it could keep him around. For now, it embodies the sacrifice and buy-in that Wilson loves about this group.
“There’s a bunch of guys that are here [who are] very selfless,” he said. “And that’s why I love being around them. They’re team guys. They want to excel.”
At the same time, they have a lot more work to do to match what the 2011 unit accomplished.
Fifteen years ago, the Giants were tied for third in the NFL with 48 sacks. They didn’t get a sack against the Cowboys last week despite recording nine quarterback hits, according to Wilson.
The Cowboys finished 8-for-11 on third down and scored on both second-half drives. Those 2011 Giants finished 17th in third-down defense, so maybe that’s an easier bar to clear.
Yet for this group to earn respect with the NASCAR package, they need sacks and stops.
The good news is that
with time to grow, the Giants’ pass rush should become even better and this package can be even more disruptive.
The first-week returns were encouraging enough to create optimism that the edge rushers could have multiple ways to elevate the defense.
Golston said: “Every team wishes it had a package where they can just have their ends out there and they’re able to eat, and the D-coordinator is able to just send four and not be able to blitz. That’s a luxury.”
Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
