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New York Giants Training Camp, Aug. 8: Practice Takeaways

Preseason opener draws closer

By Ed Valentine
NFL: New York Giants-Training Camp William Hauser-USA TODAY Sports

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Giants practiced in full pads for more than two hours on Tuesday. Here are some of the takeaways from a physical practice.

Injury Updates

Several Giants did not practice. Among them:

  • LB Mark Herzlich (stinger)
  • DT Robert Thomas (sore)
  • WR Tavarres King (ankle)
  • CB Mykkele Thompson (quad)
  • DB Ryan Murphy (unknown)
  • LB Keenan Robinson (concussion)
  • WR Kevin Snead (hamstring)

More injury updates:

  • Rookie defensive end Avery Moss left practice early with what coach Ben McAdoo said was a shoulder injury. Earlier in practice, Moss had a good moment when he beat Ereck Flowers (yes, Flowers) around the edge on a pass rush.
  • Wide receiver Sterling Shepard was in full pads and did early drill work, but did not take part in any of the team drills.

Let's try some drills

Posted by Big Blue View on Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Practice Notes

  • With Thomas sidelined, Jay Bromley continued to get first-team defensive tackle reps. Second-round pick Dalvin Tomlinson, though, seemed to have one of his better practices. He got into the backfield a couple of times and looked like a force on goal line plays. McAdoo said “he flashed a few times.”

“He’s strong, very strong. I think that’s a given with guys coming out of Alabama,” said Giants’ center Weston Richburg of Tomlinson. “I think he’ll be good inside for us, and be disruptive because he’s a smart guy, he’s pretty sharp. So I’m excited to see him and how he plays.”

  • D.J. Fluker took some third-team reps at right tackle, in addition to the second-team reps he always takes at right guard. Bromley and Fluker had a couple of nice one-on-one battles, with Bromley finding out the 340+ pound Fluker is kind of difficult to bull rush.
  • In the competition for the No. 2 quarterback job, Josh Johnson probably had a slightly better day than Geno Smith. Johnson hit Colin Thompson for a touchdown in the red zone and threw a nice deep ball for a completion to Keeon Johnson.
  • Undrafted free agent defensive end Evan Schwan flashed a few times, pressuring quarterbacks. He may have even gotten credit for a sack or two in two-minute drills.
  • Placekicker Mike Nugent went 4-for-4 during team drills with a long field-goal of 44 yards as he continues his competition with Aldrick Rosas. Asked how Rosas is handling having competition in camp, McAdoo said the untested kicker “hasn’t flinched.”
  • Flowers seemed to have a pretty good day. That one rep against Moss was the only one where he was noticeably beaten.
  • Scary moment for Matt LaCosse, oft-injured the past couple of years. After beating Jonathan Casillas and making a reception on a pass from Eli Manning, LaCosse was slow to get up. He said after practice, though, that he had only had the wind knocked out of him.
  • Rookie tight end Evan Engram had another nice day, making several catches.
  • Wide receiver Darius Powe matches up with Janoris Jenkins a couple of times in the red zone. Powe beat Jackrabbit once, but his catch was ruled out of bounds. Jackrabbit won the second battle, but he was also ruled out of bounds on a near interception.
  • I always pick on running back Khalid Abdullah for his struggles catching the ball. He made a couple of catches Tuesday for solid gains, although he did bobble one.

Fullback Competition

Will the Giants keep a true fullback? Will they just use tight end/fullback Rhett Ellison in that role? Either way, there is a nice competition shaping up between Jacob Huesman and Shane Smith. Huesman is a former college quarterback with versatility, but is just learning the physical aspects of the position. Smith is a banger who can knock defenders backwards.

“They’re different players. Huesman is a guy that’s learning the position. He knows the game, but he’s learning the position. It will take some time for him to fit his pads in there,” McAdoo said. “Smith is a guy that is very physical, heavy-handed type player. Plays with good leverage. He showed his good hands today, and did a nice job.”

Schedule Note

The Giants will practice again Wednesday at 10:55 a.m., a workout that will be open to the public. They will be off on Friday before facing the Pittsburgh Steelers Friday night (7 p.m.) in their pre-season opener.

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