Rookie Report: How The First-Year Players Fared Against the Cleveland Browns

As it gets deeper into the preseason, the veterans and starters will get more time to play. For the New York Giants, that group played a decent amount during the second preseason game against the Cleveland Browns. That makes it even more important for this year’s class of rookies to showcase their abilities in the time they can get on the field. With that in mind, below is a breakdown on how those rookies performed Monday night in Cleveland.

Evan Engram - 25 snaps

Playing mostly with the first team, Evan Engram had an up and down day, in the exact places one would think he would be up and down. He was an asset in the passing game with three receptions for 32 yards, including a nice 21-yard catch from out of the backfield.

One thing that continues to stick out with Engram is how often he is moved around the formation. Coming out of college he was considered a slot tight end, but rarely has he been used that way in the first two weeks of the preseason. He’s been in-line, in the backfield, in the slot, and out wide.

Where Engram still needs work is with his blocking. It’s not so much that the act of blocking is bad, but for the second week in a row, he blew up a play by knocking into his own player in route to a block. Against Pittsburgh he ran into John Jerry on a pull that led to a stuff of Paul Perkins in the backfield. Against Cleveland, he tripped as a lead blocker through an open hole, which erased what could have been a big gain for Orleans Darkwa.

Dalvin Tomlinson - 30 snaps

Dalvin Tomlinson was a mainstay in the second half, but was clearly not part of the main rotation for the first team. Damon Harrison and Jay Bromley were the starters and Robert Thomas worked in as the replacement ahead of Tomlinson early in the game.

Tomlinson made two run stops off the bat at the start of the second half, then did not make much of an impact until his third tackle towards the end of the fourth quarter.

Davis Webb - Did Not Play

Ben McAdoo said he wanted to get all four quarterbacks in the game, but Davis Webb was the odd man out once the game was played. Most of the game was played by Eli Manning (23 snaps) and Geno Smith (26 snaps). Josh Johnson, who is competing with Smith for the backup role got just six snaps of his own.

It would be nice for Webb to get game reps, but with the winner of the Smith/Johnson battle serving as Manning’s main backup, it’s more important to figure that out now. Webb will likely get plenty of time to play during the fourth preseason game.

Wayne Gallman - 13 snaps

In a bit of a surprise, Wayne Gallman saw limited playing time in the fourth quarter. He played just 13 snaps, but was fairly involved in those plays. He finished with five carries for 22 yards with an impressive 11-yard run to start and a few broken tackles along the way. He also had two screen plays that went for 10 yards each.

However, his night ended with a fumbled exchange with Geno Smith that was recovered by the Browns. It was not a great way to cap off the night for a player who appears to be fourth on the depth chart.

Avery Moss - 20 snaps

With the starters playing nearly 30 snaps each, Avery Moss took over in the second half and played a decent amount. He wasn’t much of a presence in the box score -- just one tackle -- and his best play was a pressure that pushed Cody Kessler from the pocket, but resulted in a scramble for a first down to the other side of the field.

Adam Bisnowaty - 25 snaps

Chad Wheeler - 30 snaps

We’ll link these two together. For the second team offensive line, Wheeler manned the left side while Bisnowaty was the right tackle. For both, there wasn’t much that stood out -- good or bad -- in the run or pass game. With Smith in at quarterback, there were many quick throws which didn’t give either tackle much time to make mistakes. Still, it was an overall solid effort from the backup tackles which was welcome on a night when there were many offensive line struggles.

Notable UDFAs

• Travis Rudolph (26 snaps) played the second-most snaps behind Roger Lewis (35). He was involved on just three passes, though, two catches and a drop.
• Calvin Munson (27 snaps) played middle linebacker for much of the second half. He had four tackles and most of them came from tracking the ball carrier across the field. He wasn’t immediately stopping plays, but made an effort to not let them get out of hand.
• Nigel Tribune didn’t get into the box score -- no tackles or defended passes -- which is a somewhat impressive feat for 23 snaps played. He mostly stuck to the right side of the defense and was occasionally left in zone without an immediate offensive player to cover. He also occasionally ran with some tight ends. His coverage was enough -- at least from the limited broadcast view -- to not warrant a throw in his direction.
• DaShaun Amos got in at the tail end of the game (10 snaps) and allowed a 12 yard pass to Mario Alford. But on the next play, he fought through a few blocks to stop quarterback Kevin Hogan after just a two-yard gain on a read-option keeper.
• Jerome Lane played 17 snaps, but his only target was an inaccurate pass from Geno Smith on a third-and-5. He was also called for offensive pass interference for a pick near the end zone, but the play resulted in a Smith interception anyway, so the penalty was declined.