It started out as a soft hum, quickly gained steam in all corners of the locker room and became so loud that Kayvon Thibodeaux could not keep a straight face. 

Thibodeaux’s Giants teammates celebrated his breakthrough moment Sunday — a game-clinching strip-sack — with an audible buzz that matched the figurative buzz around him since the moment that he became the first draft pick of a new era now associated with winning. Hearing the spontaneous hoots and hollers, the attaboys and the calls of “Superstar!” Thibodeaux broke off his thought mid-sentence, leaned back, rolled his shoulders and let out a raucous “Ayyyyyy!” into a pack of media cameras.  

“It’s a moment that we all shared with him, and we’re all going to remember that together,” fellow edge-rusher Oshane Ximines said. “We all love him there in the locker room. So, we all just wanted to show him some love on his big day.” 

The Giants have benefited from other great individual performances over the last five years, when wins were harder to come by. But the level of awareness and appreciation for Thibodeaux was a rarity. That the attention was showered on a rookie seemed to speak volumes about egoless veterans and the way Thibodeaux has assimilated with a big personality and a bigger contract ($31.3 million) 

“I think the players have a lot of respect for him,” head coach Brian Daboll said. “He got his first sack at a critical time, so it’s good to see the guys happy for him.” 

Happy is an understatement. 

“Kayvon For President,” linebacker Jihad Ward said after Thibodeaux’s three pressures and three run stops, per Pro Football Focus. Joked defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence. “You can’t tell him sh– now. I’m going to keep him humble.” 

Thibodeaux is the face of the Giants’ rookie class, but general manager Joe Schoen might have laid a deep foundation in his first draft. Nine rookies (seven draft picks) played and four started in the win against the Ravens. Four others were injured and inactive. 

“It’s definitely important to develop all your players but particularly young players as the season goes on,” Daboll said. “The more they gain good experience, I think that helps in the long run.” 

Second-round pick Wan’Dale Robinson and fourth-rounder Daniel Bellinger accounted for two of the three touchdowns. Only Saquon Barkley (four) has more touchdowns this season than Bellinger (three), though Robinson soon could be nipping at their heels as his workload increases from just 14 snaps in his return from a four-game injury absence (knee). 

“We had a plan going into this game,” Daboll said, “and we’ll play him hopefully a little bit more this week.” 

Right tackle Evan Neal — drafted two picks after Thibodeaux in the first round — received his highest blocking grade of the season and didn’t allow a quarterback hit. The Giants tweaked Neal’s vertical pass sets, which led to a slow adjustment. 

“I see him maturing in his preparation process,” offensive line coach Bobby Johnson said recently. “I also see him retaining things from week-to-week and not letting it be a case of something happens one week and it surfaces the next week and it’s new to him. … Nothing helps you as a coach like success and winning. We’re showing the players, ‘Here’s why we have been asking you to do it this way and here’s how it has helped.’ ” 

Fourth-round safety Dane Belton, who already has two fumble recoveries, joined Thibodeaux, Neal and Bellinger in the starting lineup. He finished with six tackles and a pass defended while playing 71 percent of the defense snaps. Third-rounder Josh Ezeudu played four snaps at guard when the offensive line was temporarily reshuffled because of center Jon Feliciano’s groin injury. 

Fifth-rounder Micah McFadden and undrafted rookies Ryder Anderson (NFL debut) and Tomon Fox combined for 29 defensive and special teams snaps. Fox was on the field for Thibodeaux’s forced fumble with 1:30 to go. 

“I love this rookie class, not just on the field but off the field and in the locker room,” Ximines said. “They’ve got great energy. They come ready to work every day. All those guys stepped up big in this game. They all contributed to the win, and I’m proud of all those dudes. We’re just going to keep them rolling so they can keep making those plays and we can keep getting those wins.”