ARLINGTON, Texas — Weston Richburg went to high school in tiny Bushland, tells people he is from larger Amarillo, and he says he will have plenty of family and friends will be at AT&T Stadium on Sunday to watch him start at left guard for the Giants against the Cowboys.
“So there might be 50 people that will be rooting for me and not against me,’’ Richburg said.
The rookie, a starter as soon as Geoff Schwartz went down to a toe injury back in the preseason, has been impressive, but he is coming off a rough performance — along with the entire offensive line — in a 27-0 rout at the hands of the Eagles. Richburg was unapologetic about an unnecessary roughness penalty called on him when he dove onto an already-fallen Eagles defensive lineman, stating, “That’s football,” and, “It happens all the time.”
His coach did not concur.
“I don’t buy it,’’ Tom Coughlin said. “You don’t put your team in jeopardy.”
Richburg, who was fined $8,268 by the NFL for “striking an opponent late,” has family in Dallas and others making the six-hour drive from Amarillo.
“From the small town I came from, it’s big to have somebody playing in the NFL and if the game’s going to be that close, they’re going to try to make it,’’ Richburg said. “This one’s been on my calendar for a long time. I’m excited to play in a stadium I’ve been aware of and seen games in as a kid. It’s a dream come true to play against a team you watched when you’re a kid.’’
Many of those coming to see Richburg are, or were, Cowboys fans.
“Some of ’em that have recently converted,” he said.
There was barely a peep out of the Giants this week leading into a game against the Cowboys after so much noise – some real, some imagined – before facing the Eagles. “It’s un-Giant like, but I don’t believe in any of it and I voiced it,’’ Tom Coughlin said.
“I used the word, they were a distracted group last week, I think. There seemed to be too much interest in that and not enough in playing the game.”
Do the Giants have a player on special teams who worries opponents? Probably not. It’s a different story with the Cowboys, as Dwayne Harris, a fourth-year receiver, has his hands and legs in everything. He returns kickoffs, punts and leads the team with eight tackles in coverage. “He does it all, plus he plays on their three-wide package and he’ll block anybody,’’ Coughlin said. “They’ll use him as a blocker as much as anything else. He’s on the coverage teams, he’s a gunner. Does it all.’’