“Tommy DeVito is the odd man out even though he’s a capable backup.” That line from ESPN’s Jordan Raanan cuts like a whistle. Quite impossible to ignore. Because what else is the New Jersey kid supposed to do? He just lit up New England in front of a buzzing MetLife. 17 completions on 20 attempts, 3 touchdowns, and a crowd that roared for him like he’d been wearing blue since the Phil Simms era. Goosebumps.

But the NFL isn’t in the business of fairy tales. Tommy DeVito’s rise was the kind of underdog arc that made you believe in football magic: the undrafted kid. Winning games and being crowned Tommy Cutlets. But permanence doesn’t exist here, not when Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen have stacked the quarterback room like a deck with no wild cards. Russell Wilson is locked in as QB1, rookie Jaxson Dart is the future they’re already grooming. And Jameis Winston is the veteran presence they won’t trade away.

That’s three slots filled, maxed out. Which leaves DeVito not in the huddle, but on the outside, staring down the harshest reality this league has to offer. “Tommy’s done everything we’ve asked him to do since he’s been here.” Brian Daboll didn’t mince words when asked about his young quarterback. And yet, doesn’t that almost make the whole thing tougher to swallow? Because cutdown day looms on Tuesday, and the hometown kid might be out of a job—at least in New York. This is the unforgiving business side of football. The part that doesn’t care how many goosebump moments you delivered on a Saturday night in August.

DeVito, the Livingston native who grew up dreaming in Giants blue, with a 65.3% completion rate. Add to this eight touchdowns and over 1,300 yards. And still, the QB room feels too crowded for him to squeeze through. Wilson’s the starter, Dart is the hand-picked rookie of the future, and Winston is the steady vet. That’s the deck. No wild cards. Could the Giants really carry four quarterbacks? Sure, the Cleveland Browns are flirting with that idea, but for most franchises, it’s a roster luxury that eats away at depth elsewhere.

And so DeVito, still under contract, waits. Trade? Or the harshest cut of all—release. DeVito already knows how he’ll carry it. “Every time I go out on the field, you never know if it’s going to be your last,” he told reporters on Thursday. The kind of line that lands heavy, especially after the preseason he has had. 30-for-38, 323 yards, four touchdowns, one pick. Numbers that screamed growth and belonging. Because while the Giants may have made their decision, front offices across the NFL are asking the same question fans in New York asked Thursday night. How do you let this kid walk away?

Brian Daboll’s quarterback reality check

What do you do with a folk hero who refuses to fade quietly? That’s the question Brian Daboll and the Giants face with Tommy DeVito. Slot receiver Wan’Dale Robinson isn’t ready to let the story die, though. He told ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, “There is plenty of tape out there that shows he can play in this league.” Tape doesn’t lie, and DeVito’s most recent reel—three touchdown strikes in a 42-10 preseason win over the Patriots—feels more like a teaser trailer for a sequel nobody expected.

But here’s the rub: Daboll knows the NFL doesn’t run on sentiment—it runs on survival. DeVito, undrafted out of Illinois, rode last year’s chaos into a 3-3 stretch that kept the Giants’ season from completely crumbling. He completed over 70% of his passes when injuries forced him in. By any logic, that screams “reliable backup.” Yet logic gets cruel when numbers squeeze. For DeVito, staying close to home may mean standing still, while moving on could be the only way forward.

And that’s the tragedy of it: just a year ago. DeVito was the NFL’s surprise folk tale, the quarterback no one saw coming. Now, he’s clinging to relevance in a league that chews up yesterday’s heroes without remorse. He made the impossible happen once. But to make it happen again, he might need to chase a new stage and prove that his story isn’t done cooking yet.