Micah McFadden Expected to Wear the Giants Green Dot for Edmunds

Vincent Rapisardi

6 days ago

3 min read

Updated: 12 minutes ago

Published Oct 25, 2026, 8:05 AM ET | By Vincent Rapisardi

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SM1WN8i8hTI

Key points

Micah McFadden is expected to start for the injured Tremaine Edmunds and wear the green dot, ESPN's Jordan Raanan reported Friday.
McFadden called the Giants defense for two games in December 2024 and made 11 tackles in each one.
The Giants have not ruled out Arvell Reese taking the play-calling role before Sunday's game at Houston.

Micah McFadden is moving into the Giants' starting lineup, and he is expected to run the defensive huddle, too. With Tremaine Edmunds out for the season, ESPN's Jordan Raanan expects McFadden to wear the green dot.

That is the one helmet on defense with a radio, and it carries Dennard Wilson's calls to the other 10 players. Big Blue Film Room shared Raanan's report on X Friday evening.

The Edmunds injury and the full linebacker depth chart are covered in Tremaine Edmunds Out for Season: Who Replaces Him for the Giants. This story is about his second new job.

Micah McFadden Has Called the Giants Defense Before

This would not be McFadden's first turn with the dot. In December 2024, with Bobby Okereke out with a back injury, he relayed the calls of then-coordinator Shane Bowen, Giants.com reported.

His first game in the role was a 14-11 loss to the Saints. He made 11 tackles, five of them for loss. Per the NFL, he was the fifth player in five seasons to do that in one game.

"It definitely felt different being the guy calling the plays," McFadden said that week. "It's a big responsibility. I honestly enjoyed doing it when I was out there."

Bowen's review was short. "I thought he did a really good job," he said.

By the Numbers: Micah McFadden With the Green Dot in 2024

Game	Tackles (solo)	Sacks
Dec. 8 vs. Saints (L 14-11)	11 (8)	0
Dec. 15 vs. Ravens (L 35-14)	11 (7)	1
2024 season (14 games)	107 (60)	3

Sources: ESPN's 2024 game log for Micah McFadden and Giants.com (green dot assignment).

What the Job Asks of McFadden This Time

McFadden explained the hard part in 2024. "You could be saying multiple things right before the snap," he said, "and then you gotta get yourself ready and aligned to go do your job successfully, too."

The difference now is the playbook. Wilson took over the defense this year. He named four linebackers who could take the dot, as we laid out in Tremaine Edmunds Injury: Who Wears the Giants Green Dot Now.

McFadden has spent most of 2026 on special teams. Raanan's preseason NFC East preview described him as "a proven NFL starter, in a reserve role."

Arvell Reese Is Still an Option

The plan is not locked in. NJ Advance Media's Darryl Slater reported Friday that McFadden will probably handle the play calls, but the Giants have not ruled out Arvell Reese doing it.

Reese, a rookie, has played nearly every defensive snap this season. The radio would add one more assignment to his plate.

The 3-2-1 Giants visit the 2-4 Texans at 1 p.m. ET Sunday. It comes days after Wilson called Giants who do not hustle "traitors to the defense."

Our Take: What to Watch From Micah McFadden in Houston

I will be watching the first few series before the tackle column. The green dot job shows up before the snap. Watch how fast the Giants line up and whether anyone is still pointing when the ball moves.

McFadden's December 2024 games are the best evidence we have. He got the call in and still made plays himself. Two games is a small sample, though, under a different coordinator.

The bigger question is the snap count. McFadden has barely played defense this season, so his conditioning and his feel for Wilson's calls will get tested at the same time.

If Reese ends up wearing the dot instead, that tells us something too. Either way, the Giants will learn on Sunday who their defense listens to without Edmunds in the middle.

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