‘Going To Play for Free’ — Giants RB Cam Skattebo Takes Shot at NFL After Getting Penalized by Refs vs. Texans

‘Going To Play for Free’ — Giants RB Cam Skattebo Takes Shot at NFL After Getting Penalized by Refs vs. TexansIn one of the more improbable upsets of the season, the New York Giants, quarterbacked by J.J. McCarthy, beat the Houston Texans 27-21 in overtime. However, the story of the game was a bruising ground game, led by Cam Skattebo.Unfortunately, the game also saw one of the most bizarre penalties in recent memory, when Skattebo was called for unnecessary roughness while carrying the ball. He wasn’t too thrilled by the call either and voiced his frustrations after the game.Cam Skattebo Isn’t a Fan of the Penalty in Week 7Despite McCarthy throwing for 252 yards, Skattebo was the star of the game for the Giants. Running roughshod over the Texans’ defensive unit, he finished the game with 124 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.It continued what has been a solid season so far for him as the Giants somehow improved to 4-2-1 despite missing Jaxson Dart since their Week 1 victory. However, that penalty left many people incensed.As he charged ahead on a 1st-and-10 play from the Giants’ own 23 early with a little over five minutes remaining in the first quarter, he was assessed an unnecessary roughness penalty for lowering his helmet towards M.J. Stewart.PREDICT THE NFL SEASON:PFN’s Free NFL Playoff PredictorAs a result, he is expected to be fined for the call. However,speaking to reporters in the locker room, Skattebo made it clear that the NFL was applying an unfair double standard in his case.“The NFL loves to post me when I do stuff like that, but then also wants to take stuff from me,” Skattebo said. “I’m going to run the ball like I want to run the ball. If I’m going to continue to get flags for it or fined for it, then it’s just, I guess, I’m going to play for free.”Continuing, he added, “I’m gonna do what I can to be on this team, to give everything I got, and if they’re gonna punish me for that, then I’m just gonna keep doing it. Keep playing hard.”BE THE GM OF YOUR FAVORITE TEAM:PFN’s Free NFL Mock Draft SimulatorThat hard-nosed mentality from Skattebo has already made him a fan favorite among the Giants’ fan base and locker room. And it has proven to be effective on the field as well, as he sits at number 34 on PFN’s Running Back Impact Metric. With this penalty, though, the backlash was intense all across social media. From fans and media alike, the consensus was that calling a roughness penalty on a player rushing the ball was a shocking choice, especially for the kind of play the league sees multiple times every game.For Skattebo, the message was simple: he has no plans to change the physical running style that has helped make him such a productive part of the Giants’ offense. Whether that leads to more penalties or fines remains to be seen.This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.