![](https://giantswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/67/2021/11/58767a49faa146ad90aee85310c9ead7.jpg?w=1000&h=600&crop=1)
The Giants will be without starting safety Xavier McKinney for a little while. McKinney released a statement on Twitter Monday saying he was in an ATV accident while sightseeing in Cabo during the team’s bye week and will miss “a few weeks” due to a hand injury he suffered in the crash.
McKinney says he’ll do everything he can to “get back as quickly as possible,” but this is a significant blow for the Giants – especially considering it came during the bye week. Not to mention, he’s the defense’s signal caller, wearing the green dot and relaying the calls from Wink Martindale to the rest of the defense on the field.
— Xavier McKinney (@mckinney15__) November 7, 2022
He’s been a starting safety for the Giants since coming into the NFL as a second-round pick in 2020, starting all eight games so far this season. He has 38 tackles, one sack and four passes defensed in 2022, also forcing one fumble.
McKinney won’t be an easy player for New York to replace, from a production standpoint, as well as a leadership one. Rookie Dane Belton could get more playing time while McKinney is out, and the Giants also have Landon Collins on the practice squad.