Kayvon Thibodeaux pondered the question:
A year ago you and Azeez Ojulari were planning to be Peanut Butter and Jelly rushing the passer together. Azeez couldn’t stay on the field. What is it now with you and Brian Burns?
“Now it’s like … it’s like … what, Spider-Man and Black Panther or something?” Thibodeaux told The Post at an SBH Health System Youth Football Camp at Lehman College.
Sold!
“Yeah, I’m Black Panther, he’s Spider-Man.”
Thibodeaux recorded 11.5 sacks in his second season and is setting his sights on the single-season sack record (22.5) set by Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt.
Asked what he can do for an encore, Thibodeaux said: “I mean, I’m always going to shoot for the stars, so only thing you can do from here is go for the record.”
How realistic is that?
“As long as you believe in it, it’s as realistic as you want it to be,” Thibodeaux said, “so if you ask me, it’s very real.”
Thibodeaux and Burns, whom the Giants traded for and signed to a five-year, $141 million deal, have bonded together quickly.
“If you’ve seen us both stand next to each other, you’d think we were made in the same lab,” Thibodeaux said.
Iron sharpening iron.
“He challenges me,” Thibodeaux said. “When you’re talking about having somebody who’s similar body types, similar mindsets that has reached a higher level of greatness than I have, it’s nothing but motivation, it’s constant work whether we’re watching film with each other, whether we’re talking ball or whether we’re on the field getting pass rush in, and seeing how he does things and how I can implement it in my game and then there’s certain things that I do differently that he can implement in his game.”
Burns was Thibodeaux’s Florida State host before Thibodeaux decided on Oregon.
“He was a great host,” Thibodeaux said. “It was a great time. I didn’t end up going to Florida State, but he was a guy that I modeled my game after, he gave me some tips. It’s just a full circle moment seeing him come back now and us being able to pass rush together.”
Asked if they did anything fun during his visit, Thibodeaux said, “Honestly, I don’t remember, but hey, college is a blur, so we probably did have fun, put it like that.”
As much as he liked Wink Martindale, Thibodeaux is excited to work with new Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen.
“He’s a great defensive mind, he’s a guy who’s about fundamentals, he’s about technique — he knows that it’s a players’ game,” Thibodeaux said. “Just his defense and what he stands for reminds me of what I used to have back in college.”
Thibodeaux said he is impressed with what he’s seen on tape of Giants’ first-round draft pick Malik Nabers.
“He’s explosive, he’s a playmaker, I think as long as his mind is right and he’s focused on the game and his values are aligned, I think he’s going to translate really well in the NFL,” he said.
Nabers will be Daniel Jones’ first No. 1 receiver. Asked how much he can help Jones, Thibodeaux said: “I think it’s a collective. I think everybody helps everybody. We all kind of touch each other’s money, so as long as up front we play our best, running backs play their best, wide receivers play their best, Daniel Jones plays his best, the team will be great.”
Jones will need to stage a Last Chance rebound behind an upgraded offensive line — it can’t possibly be worse — but with Devin Singletary replacing Saquon Barkley, Philadelphia Eagle.
“It hurts to see a guy go, but it’s going to make that game just a little more exciting,” Thibodeaux said.
Thibodeaux doesn’t buy the premise that the burden will be on the defense to carry the team early on.
“No, I think it’s a new year,” he said. “Even the teams that won the Super Bowl and made the playoffs, they’re revamping their whole situation. I’m just excited, man. I think the GM and the front office has put together a great team, a great coaching staff, and I think that we’re primed to make great plays.”
Safety Xavier McKinney of the Packers won’t be making great plays behind him. GM Joe Schoen is counting on second-round pick Tyler Nubin to fill that void.
“It’s always tough when you part ways with guys, but his legacy is going to continue to build, and he was able to get paid, so I’m happy for him and I think that he’s going to have a great season and great career,” Thibodeaux said.
Hope sure springs eternal in May. It is a time when Thibodeaux can express the belief that the NFC East is wide open. He is asked what he would say to all the doubters who are dismissing the Giants, me included.
“We love the underdog story,” he said. “Just stay where you are when we right the ship and we get on course.”
His message to Giants fans?
“Just keep riding with us,” Thibodeaux said. “It’s going to be a long road, but look at the Knicks. It’s been a long road, but hey, they’re still fighting. I think they’re a great team, they play with tenacity, they play hard. I think they got a chance. And I think that as long as the fans keep sticking with ’em, riding with ’em through the ups and the downs, we’ll eventually be to The Promised Land.”
Like the rest of New York, he marvels at Jalen Brunson.
“Phenomenal. Phenomenal. If he keeps playing this way,” Thibodeaux said, “he could find himself in the Hall of Fame.”
And now a Happy Mother’s Day wish to mom.
“She doesn’t know this yet, but I’m writing a song for her for Mother’s Day,” he said. “Hopefully it comes out dope.”
No songs for opposing quarterbacks from Spider-Man and Black Panther.
