Cam Skattebo’s unsuccessful backflip at Fanatics Fest lasted only a few seconds, but the argument it provoked went rather deeper, touching upon why the running back became such an immediate favourite in New York — and why the Giants need him to resist some of the impulses that helped create that connection.

Skattebo attempted the stunt during a WWE-themed appearance at the Javits Center on Saturday, pointing towards his surgically repaired right leg before launching himself backwards. He completed the rotation but failed to remain upright upon landing, producing a viral clip that looked particularly alarming only nine months after his rookie season ended with a catastrophic injury.

The second-year back moved quickly to reassure supporters and his employer that the fall had caused no damage. Appearing with Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart during a live recording of SiriusXM’s The Fantasy Footballers show the following day, Skattebo explained that the surface — rather than his recovering leg — had betrayed him.

“I’ve been doing backflips since I was, like, four years old, so it’s natural to me,” he claimed. “I don’t know if you guys know WWE or not, but those floors are bouncy. So, when I took off, I was mid-air, like, holy cow, I’m not gonna land this, I’m way too high. I landed, but [the floor] had too much cushion. It wasn’t stiff, firm ground, so that’s why I kinda like went back, safely landed, got back up, was good to go.

“I’m perfectly fine. Nothing happened. We’re good. [But] I’m gonna address the elephant… I will not hurt myself before the season!”

The explanation resolved the immediate medical concern without making the decision appear substantially wiser. Skattebo was not injured, but that did not make attempting an unnecessary acrobatic move on an unfamiliar surface a prudent choice days before training camp.

That distinction was at the heart of the local reaction. The New York Post described the scene as ‘worrying’ given the severity of his previous injury, while Chris Russo subsequently labelled the stunt ‘beyond stupid’ during an appearance on ESPN’s First Take.

Skattebo dislocated his right ankle when his leg became trapped beneath him during the Giants’ Week 8 defeat by the Philadelphia Eagles last October, while ESPN subsequently reported that he also sustained an open tibia fracture and a ruptured deltoid ligament, requiring immediate surgery in Philadelphia. The injuries brought an abrupt end to one of the few encouraging developments in a difficult Giants season. The fourth-round pick had rushed 101 times for 410 yards and five touchdowns across eight appearances, adding 24 receptions for 207 yards and two further scores. His production was valuable, but his bruising, uninhibited approach made the greater impression.

Skattebo’s flips were already part of that identity, with Newsday noting last October that the Giants had become aware of his touchdown acrobatics, which included adding a cartwheel before a backflip during a three-score performance against Philadelphia. He also successfully landed the move at a charity basketball event earlier this offseason, with the footage widely treated as evidence of his improving health.

That earlier response complicates criticism of the Fanatics Fest attempt. Applauding a successful flip as a recovery milestone before condemning the same act only when the landing goes wrong places too much weight upon the outcome. Either both were needless risks or both were expressions of a player whose physical abandon cannot easily be separated into convenient categories. Dart chose to emphasise what the attempt suggested about his teammate’s recovery.

“Hey, when I looked at it, I was like, ‘that’s the most explosive I’ve seen Skat’ — he just over-rotated,” the QB said. “He looks real good, man. He looks real good.”

Skattebo has no intention of sanding down his personality either. Asked about the ‘wild maniac’ reputation he has acquired, he accepted one half of the description while rejecting the assumption that his exuberance makes him unintelligent.

“No, I totally enjoy that part, but I think I less enjoy the brain-dead kind of guy,” he said. “But it is what it is. I mean, the New York people love it, so I’m just gonna keep being me. And if they wanna say I’m brain-dead and I don’t have no brain, then who cares? F*ck it, you know?”