Giants Add Former Viking LB Devante Downs to Practice Squad

Giants add reinforcement at inside linebacker in case Alec Ogletree and/or Tae Davis won't be ready for Sunday.

Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

The Giants have added linebacker Devante Downs, who was waived by the Vikings last week, to their practice squad.

Downs, 6-foot-2, 252 pounds, is an inside linebacker who played his college ball at California. 

At Cal, he recorded 211 total tackles including 14.5 tackles for a loss. Downs also logged 8.0 sacks, five interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown), two pass breakups, 3forced fumbles, and 3fumble recoveries.

Downs was a seventh-round pick (No. 225 overall) of the Vikings in last year's draft, and appeared in 11 games for them in his rookie campaign, recording three tackles, two of which were solo efforts.

Downs was waived by the Vikings at the end of this year's training camp and was signed to their practice squad the next day. He then was promoted to the active roster on September 14, 2019, but was waived ten days later. 

I'm told that linebacker Devante Downs, waived by the #Vikings last week, has signed with the New York Giants practice squad. The Vikings play at the Giants on Sunday.

— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) September 30, 2019

Injuries have struck the Giants' inside linebackers hard this season. The team placed rookie Ryan Connelly on injured reserve Monday after he tore his ACL in the team's Week 4 win over Washington.

Alec Ogletree (hamstring) and Tae Davis (concussion) have also been ailing, but head coach Pat Shurmur said Monday that both were getting closer to returning.

Davis would appear to be a little closer to returning than Ogletree, the latter of whom has yet to do any known jogging. 

However, with the Giants' next game still a few days away, they now have some reinforcement just in case they find themselves short-staffed at the off-ball linebacker position.

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