Giants' Austin Calitro: Could take on starting role

Calitro is a candidate to take on a starting role at inside linebacker after Blake Martinez was released Thursday, Dan Duggan of The Athletic reports.

Calitro was a late-July addition to the squad and was initially a long shot to make the 53-man roster. However, he stood out during the preseason slate, racking up 11 solo tackles, five pressures, a recovered fumble and two interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown) over 101 snaps. Calitro has played primarily on special teams over the past two seasons between the Broncos and Bengals, but he did see a fair amount of action on defense in his first two NFL campaigns with Seattle and Jacksonville. Rookie Micah McFadden could be the more likely candidate to take over Martinez's starting role for the Giants, but even in that scenario Calitro's role should get a boost.