Giants at Bills 2016: Eli Manning “looking forward” to first action

Thirteen seasons into his NFL career New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning made it plain earlier this week that getting reps in preseason games is important to him. Manning will gets his first preseason reps on Saturday when the Giants travel to face the Buffalo Bills, and said Thursday he is “looking forward” to the opportunity.

“I haven’t taken a hit or had some live action in a long time, so I am looking forward to getting out on the field, seeing what we can do with this offense, getting some live work with the receivers and running backs and offensive line,” Manning said. “We are going up against a good defense, multiple schemes, so it is going to be a good test for us and our communication on the road, using all of your --- things you have to do when you play on the road, so our communication and execution has to be good.”

Manning hinted that he wasn’t thrilled by coach Ben McAdoo’s decision not to play him last week against the Miami Dolphins.

“You have to listen to the coach’s orders,” he said. “It is not something that I ideally like ... there is a different feel when you know you aren’t going to get out there on the field.”

Manning said there was also some miscommunication the day of the game regarding what was expected of him.

“Everything kind of got a little thrown off,” Manning said. “I was told that I wasn’t going to dress at all and so I came in here early that day and got a full workout in and a run and did some things, so I was going to go out and just do a pre pregame and do some throwing with Odell and a few guys and then I was told that I had to dress and go through warm ups, so it changed my plan a little bit, but we went through that, but I didn’t take a whole lot of reps.”

Regardless, that is in the past and Manning is excited about the chance to get some game action with some of the team’s young wide receivers.

“I think the preseason games are very helpful. Every rep, every practice rep [helps],” he said. “You get certain concepts and certain routes, but going against different technique, different looks, different forms of defense, you are going to get a different reaction, so I think every live rep counts a little bit extra when you get in the game, in the preseason game, so I am looking forward to getting out there and working some concepts with some of the young guys and getting on the same page with them, making sure that we are where we need to be.”

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Anthony Dable showing improvement (NJ.com)

Dable has flashed his potential this week in practice. He had eight catches in team periods on Thursday, consistently using his size advantage over smaller defensive backs.

Dable, who signed a one-year, $450,000 contract, is an ideal practice squad candidate. Making him more attractive, there is an exception for international players that allows them to be kept without counting against the 10-player practice squad limit.

But Dable would still need to clear waivers to make it to the Giants' practice squad. If his practice performances carry over to the preseason games, that may not be an easy task.

• Dable recently told Big Blue View he was feeling more comfortable and playing faster

Ryan Nassib aims for bounce-back game (Newsday)

“The thing about this game is you have to have a short memory, especially at our position,” Nassib told Newsday. “Right after it we put that game to bed and moved on to the rest of training camp and the Buffalo week.”

Nassib completed 7 of 15 passes for 75 yards during his three quarters of play, but he also threw two interceptions and fumbled the ball away once in a 27-10 loss to the Dolphins. They were the first interceptions of his career, including both the preseason and regular season.

“I definitely did some things that were uncharacteristic of me,” Nassib said. “We definitely strive to protect the football here, that’s our number one priority. Those turnovers definitely didn’t reflect that.”

Hear 911 calls by Josh Brown’s wife (New York Daily News)