Cam Skattebo shines in true Simone Biles style to mercilessly crush the Dallas Cowboys

C am Skattebo waited nearly 11 months to play another meaningful NFL game, but it took him just eight minutes to remind everyone why New York Giants fans had become so enamored with him.

The running back made his long-awaited return from a devastating ankle injury in Sunday's season opener against the Dallas Cowboys and immediately delivered the kind of moment that has become synonymous with his personality.

After helping New York march 83 yards on its opening possession, Skattebo finished the drive with a three-yard touchdown run. And then came the celebration: a cartwheel followed by his trademark backflip.

It was a remarkable sight given what Skattebo had been through since suffering a serious right ankle injury against the Philadelphia Eagles last October.

He had undergone surgery and spent months working his way back to the field, with his availability for the opening game initially becoming one of the major storylines surrounding the Giants .

The result was eventually a 28-20 Giants victory over Dallas, giving new head coach John Harbaugh a winning start and providing Skattebo with the perfect stage for his comeback. He finished with 81 rushing yards and a touchdown as New York controlled the game on the ground.

The backflip, however, had not exactly been part of the plan.

Skattebo had previously suggested he would avoid performing the acrobatic celebration during training camp. His coaches had good reason to be nervous after he performed a backflip at Fanatics Fest only a couple of months earlier.

Harbaugh had reportedly spoken with the running back about avoiding the move, particularly given how much rehabilitation had gone into getting him back on the field.

But once Skattebo reached the end zone in an NFL game again, the temptation proved too strong.

Skattebo's comeback was about much more than one celebration

The touchdown was particularly meaningful because Skattebo's road back to football had been difficult both physically and mentally.

The fourth-round pick from Arizona State had burst onto the scene as a rookie in 2025, rushing for 410 yards and five touchdowns while adding 207 receiving yards and another two scores in just eight games.

His season abruptly ended when he suffered a dislocated ankle against Philadelphia.

The injury was so serious that Skattebo recently admitted he had genuinely considered walking away from football.

"Yeah, definitely. I would say probably a month in," he said when discussing whether retirement had crossed his mind. "The first month was kind of like, 'Damn, do I really want to do this?' And then, you know, it was seven games. I was like, 'You know, I got to go back and play.'"

That makes his return against Dallas even more significant. He wasn't simply coming back from an ordinary injury; he was returning after questioning whether his football career was worth continuing.

And his performance suggested that the injury had done little to change his identity as a player.

Before the season, Skattebo insisted that he would not allow the setback to transform the physical style that made him so popular.

"It ain’t gonna change who I am," he said. "I had an injury, you know, it is what it is. I’ve still got plenty of football left, plenty of life left, I’m not going to let this little ankle thing bother me. I’m going to get back [to] running people over like you see on the videos. It’s going to be normal Cam Skattebo from here on out."

Against Dallas , that promise was fulfilled.

Skattebo was part of a Giants rushing attack that produced 165 yards, while quarterback Jaxson Dart added another 54 on the ground. The Giants finished with 394 total yards and controlled possession for more than 36 minutes.

Dart also delivered three touchdown passes in his first season opener under Harbaugh, while tight end Isaiah Likely caught two touchdown passes.

The combination gave Dallas' revamped defense a miserable introduction to the season. For Skattebo , however, the evening belonged to the comeback.

When Giants reporters had previously asked whether fans could expect the famous celebration after touchdowns, he had left the door open.

"When gametime comes around, we’ll see when gametime comes around," Skattebo said. "But we’re focused on training camp, and we’’l keep the backflips off the field for now.

"I’m going to continue to be who I am and hopefully make everybody happy around me, continue to be positive. If a kid wants a backflip, he’ll see the backflip when it’s touchdown time."

It turns out that "when it's touchdown time" came very quickly.

Skattebo later told NBC's Melissa Stark that he did not necessarily intend to make the backflip a regular feature of his celebrations this season. That may be good news for Harbaugh and the Giants ' medical staff.

But for one night, at least, Skattebo celebrated exactly as Giants fans hoped he would — with a touchdown, a victory and a Simone Biles -style display of athletic exuberance that announced his return in unforgettable fashion.

After everything he had endured, the backflip was more than a celebration. It was a statement that Cam Skattebo was back.