Azeez Ojulari played on Sunday as if he was trying to make up for the impact of missing seven games at once.
Ojulari made the Giants’ biggest play in the second quarter when he sacked Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinik and recovered a double. That created the short field the struggling Giants offense needed to score first down It ended in a 20-20 draw. Oshane Jiminez initially recovered the loose ball, but he also coughed it up.
“When I get to the quarterback, I always try to get the ball out,” said Ojulari, who was charged with one-on-one blocking. “You never know what could happen. I reached for it and it came out, I thought it was on ‘OX’ but it missed it so I fell for it. It just kept chasing the ball.”
The game seemed to jump start Ojularini, playing for the first time since October 2nd. Ojulari, who missed the first two games after injuring his right leg in training camp, injured his left leg in Week 4 against the Bears. He failed the first time he could come back.
“It definitely got me going,” Ojulari said. “Lighted my fire and then knocked me over.”
Later, Ojulari beat Heinik on the blind side on third-and-10 in overtime, forcing a short completion and a punt. On fourth-and-four late in the fourth quarter, Heinik escaped the fumble when he was chased out of the pocket. However, the Giants lost coverage in the backfield and the Commanders had a first down en route to a 90-yard drive that tied the score at 20-20.
“I was so close,” Ojulari said. “I was trying to change it – go in, go back out. Heinicke made a good shot and they had the ball. All credit to him.”
Ojulari admitted he was on the speed limit, but may have passed an unknown number. Manager Brian Daboll credited Ojuli for doing “good things” as the Giants split their reps with Jiminez and Jihad Ward in imprecise passing situations.
“When the team needed me, no matter how much I played, I was able to go,” Ojulari said. “Man, I’ve been dying to get back there. It is very difficult to watch them from the side. When I got the chance, I took advantage of everything. I am happy to be back.”
The Giants spent most of the second half without defensive end Leonard Williams (neck injury). If Williams misses time, Ojuari’s return will be even more important. If Williams plays against the Eagles next week, the Giants will finally have their four-man pass rush — including Kyvon Thibodeau and Dexter Lawrence — on target.
“It’s urgent for me to get there [to quarterback] high,” Ojulari said after raising his career high to 10 sacks in 20 games. “I just want to impact the team no matter what. As a unit, we all … just get the juice off each other and the hustle heats up. The intensity builds.”