New York Giants Training Camp: Wednesday 8/7 practice open thread

The New York Giants take to the practice field Wednesday at Quest Diagnostics Training Center with their first preseason game, which will take place Saturday against the Pittsburgh Steelers, growing ever closer.

Before we move on to new business, let's look back at what we wrote Tuesday about the Giants showing a 3-4 look during practice. There was some discussion of whether it was a true 3-4 or a '4-3 under' defense using a defensive end as a standup rover who will primarily attack the line of scrimmage.

I checked with someone who knows a whole lot more about defense than I do -- former Giants linebacker turned broadcaster Carl Banks. The always helpful Banks described what the Giants are showing as "a version of a 3-4 with a DE serving as a hybrid."

The different defensive alignments the Giants have been experimenting with bear watching, and I will try to get a better read on what exactly they are employing during practice Wednesday and Thursday.

'Football on Your Phone' reaction

The 'Football on Your Phone' DirectTV commercial shot by Eli Manning and his brother, Peyton, has -- of course -- gotten plenty of reaction from Giants' players.

"I thought it was awesome," said punter Steve Weatherford. "It's a consensus that Peyton's a little bit more outgoing, a little bit more outspoken, but I thought Eli stole the show."

Favorite line? When Eli burst through the portrait of Alexander Graham Bell. If you don't remember, Eli shouts "Who cares, dude's dead," when he leaps through the portrait.

"I think we probably had as much fun with it in the locker room as all the media and all the fans did," Weatherford said. "Nobody sees him in that light."

Weatherford admitted that players are singing 'Football on Your Phone' everywhere they go. "It's not getting annoying yet, though. I don't assume it will for at least a week," he said.

Manning was his typical dry self when meeting with the media Tuesday, admitting only that the video "got some laughs" from his teammates.

Other Notes

Hakeem Nicks, Terrell Thomas, Corey Webster and Chris Snee returned to practice Tuesday. Webster practiced fully, while the others were limited in varying degrees. Let's see how quickly each player ramps up in terms of how much they do at practice.