Giants should be encouraged by rookie defensive lineman’s recent surge

The New York Giants' rookie class has been impressive to start the season. In their Week 3 win over the Cleveland Browns, undrafted rookie defensive lineman Elijah Chatman continued his strong start to the season with his best performance to date.

Elijah Chatman is emerging as one of the Giants' starting defensive linemen

The Giants' defense contained the Cleveland Browns' offense on Sunday. The Browns totaled only 217 yards of offense on Sunday as Big Blue's defense suffocated the opposition. The G-Men sacked Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson eight times for a loss of 48 yards in Week 3.

Chatman contributed one of those sacks and had his most productive game of the season so far against Cleveland. He totaled three tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss, and one quarterback hit against the Browns. He also recovered a crucial fumble forced by Brian Burns in the second quarter.

The Browns' offense rushed for only 69 yards in Week 3 — a massive improvement for the Giants' defense after surrendering 111 rushing yards to the Vikings in Week 1 and another 215 rushing yards to the Commanders in Week 2.

The Giants have seemingly found a gem in Chatman, who has been improving every week. The undrafted rookie made waves during the summer with a few standout performances during training camp and in the preseason. He earned a roster spot despite being undrafted and now seems to be carving out a more prominent role as a starter in Big Blue's defensive lineup.