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Let’s get your Friday started with a few leftover items from Thursday’s New York Giants OTA.
Quote Machine
Damon Harrison was in a jolly, entertaining mood when he met with a group of reporters on Thursday. Here are a few of Harrison’s best lines.
On former teammate Sheldon Richardson’s critical remarks about Brandon Marshall ...
“Oh wow y’all got to keep the mic away from Sheldon man. (Looking into the camera) Sheldon, get away from the damn microphone.”
On whether he is concerned by Olivier Vernon and Odell Beckham missing voluntary OTAs ...
“OV and OBJ are somewhere working out just as hard or maybe even harder than we are. So I’m confident that they’ll come in and will be ready.
“You know they have some valid reasons why they are not here I’m sure. They are not here because they just didn’t feel like coming. If I didn’t live in New Jersey full time I probably wouldn’t be here right now. I mean OV is from Miami have you seen the weather here lately? I’d run from it to. I’m sure they have some good reasons why.”
On what players who skip OTAs miss ...
“They miss seeing me, man. You get to come to work every day and see me. Wouldn’t you be excited?”
When he learned that rookie Dallvin Tomlinson had revealed that Harrison reached out to him after the NFL Draft ...
“He told y’all that, man? We have to teach the rookies man. He don’t be telling the media nothing, man.”
Brandon Marshall: Giants Organization “Special”
Wide receiver Brandon Marshall is in his 12th season and the Giants are his fifth NFL team.
“I am extremely excited about being in this organization,” Marshall said. “A rich history and probably a top three organization in the National Football League, and maybe one of the best organizations in all of sports. You hear about it and it is a known thing across the league, but when you are in here, you can feel it. I had an opportunity to sit at the desk with Phil Simms for a few years at Showtime, Inside the NFL, and he is always talking about it. I thought that he was just blowing smoke up my butt, but this truly is a special place. The difference between this place and others is that every organization that you go to, you find a person, whether it is in the equipment room or cafeteria, that has been around 20, 25 years, but every department (here), you hear of people being here 13, 14, 15 years, 20 years, 25 years and that is special. It keeps the team together.”
Geno Smith Says He Could Have Started Elsewhere
Backup quarterback Geno Smith admitted Thursday that he had offers this season from other teams where he could have competed to be a starter, which won’t happen with the Giants as long as Eli Manning is healthy.
“Yeah, but I am going to keep that to myself,” Smith said. “I feel like this gave me the best opportunity to grow as a player and I am happy about the decision that I made.
“…Being with Coach McAdoo and all of the coaches – I really got a good vibe from the guys and being with a winning organization. All of the things that I put on the top of my list, I felt that here was the place for it.”
McAdoo Pleased By New Roster Rule
The NFL has eliminated the preseason roster cut from 90 players to 75 after the third preseason game, meaning teams can carry all 90 players into the final preseason game. Giants coach Ben McAdoo likes the move.
“I'm pleased. I think it's a great opportunity,” McAdoo said. “These young guys that come in here, they get a ton of reps in the off-season, and they get a ton of reps in your practice and training camp, and that's really an opportunity for you to showcase them and get an opportunity to make your roster; and if it's not your roster, then somebody else's roster in the league. So I think it's doing right by the players.”