The New England Patriots and New York Giants will soon revisit each other for the 15th consecutive preseason finale.
But before things kick off Thursday night at Gillette Stadium, there are some numbers of note from the last time New England crossed paths with New York to close out the summer.
Here’s 10 from Aug. 30, 2018.
17: Seventeen Patriots who played in last year’s exhibition finale went on to spend time on the team’s active roster. That list included offensive linemen Ted Karras, Matt Tobin, Cole Croston, Brian Schwenke and James Ferentz. It also included defensive linemen Geneo Grissom, Derek Rivers, Adam Butler and Keionta Davis. The same goes for linebacker Nicholas Grigsby, plus defensive backs such as veteran Jason McCourty, former second-rounder Cyrus Jones and rookies J.C. Jackson and Keion Crossen. The trio of specialists, too.
10: If accounting for the overlap, a total of 10 Patriots players who checked in at MetLife Stadium later made a stop on the 10-man practice squad. The aforementioned Croston, Ferentz and Jones were among them. As was quarterback Danny Etling, running backs Ralph Webb and Kenneth Farrow, defensive tackles Vincent Valentine and Frank Herron, edge-rusher Trent Harris and corner Jomal Wiltz.
86: Etling, who was waived and claimed by the Atlanta Falcons this August, rushed for as many yards on his bootleg touchdown versus New York as New England’s committee of active running backs did all game.
2: A rising undrafted free agent in Jackson picked off two passes. But also, two players on the field that Thursday would go on to be placed on injured reserve by New England. Offensive tackle Ulrick John was one. The other, Schwenke, was released and re-signed by the Patriots after Labor Day before landing on IR in November.
50: There were 50 players who didn’t log a snap versus New York but were on New England’s roster of 90 for the preseason finale.
36: Of those 50 players who sat out the Thursday meeting, 36 were on the Patriots’ active roster by the conclusion of the regular season.
6: Six of New England’s nine draft picks last spring were placed on injured reserve before the opening game of regular season. All six, ranging from first pick Isaiah Wynn to last pick Ryan Izzo, were expectedly sidelined for the preseason finale.
26: The defensive snaps played by then-Giants linebacker Calvin Munson in the 17-12 end result. Munson spent the subsequent regular season and playoffs on New England’s scout team. The San Diego State product recorded six tackles for New York that night and frequented the kicking game.
3: The Patriots filled out their preseason roster in the days leading up to the last Giants meeting with Farrow, fellow running back Khalfani Muhammad and wideout K.J. Maye. Maye proceeded to play every offensive down versus New York and led the way in receiving yards. Farrow and Muhammad, meanwhile, combined for 66 yards of offense on 13 touches. New England took a similar approach to begin this week, signing ex-Giants back Robert Martin as well as linebacker Scooby Wright. The former handled three carries against the Patriots during the 2018 finale.
43: It’s the tally of players who resided on the Patriots’ 90-man roster then that reside on it now.