10:45 AM PT -- Breece Hall is breaking his silence on the incident ... saying, "If you know me you know I always show love!!! There’s a time and a place for everything but harassing me at baggage claim ain’t the time or place💯."

Breece also thanked Carl and "my guy Joe" for getting involved ... adding their presence helped keep the peace.

Breece Hall came face-to-face with an overzealous autograph seeker when he touched down in Jersey after a week of partying in Vegas at the Super Bowl ... and things got so tense, NY Giants legend Carl Banks stepped in to prevent things from escalating!

The incident went down last Sunday at Newark Airport just a few minutes after the 22-year-old got off his flight, while he was waiting at baggage claim ... when a fan *attempted* to get Breece's John Hancock.

For whatever reason, Hall, one of the best running backs in the NFL, didn't want to sign, so he declined ... and that's when things went south.

A witness heard the commotion and whipped out his phone and started rolling.

It's unclear exactly what was said/done to kick things off, but the fan was heard telling Hall, "So, be a man. If you're gonna slap me, slap me!"

61-year-old Banks, the 2x Super Bowl-winning Giants linebacker intervened, putting his 6'4" frame in between the fan and Breece, while encouraging the guy to keep it moving.

But, the guy wasn't done ... he continued jawing at Hall, who seemed to keep his cool despite the stressful situation.

At one point, another witness off-camera is heard warning the angry man, "It's a federal crime if you get in a fight at the airport."

Seemingly taking the advice, the man finally walks off ... but not before hurling one last insult at the NFL star.

"Get the f*** out of here, p****!"

As for why Banks assisted Hall, we asked Carl ... #58 said he wasn't going to stand by and let his buddy get screwed with.

Who says the Giants and Jets are rivals?