"Working 'em smart:" Giants managing Victor Cruz, Odell Beckham Jr.

There is no pressure on New York Giants wide receivers coach Sean Ryan during this preseason. All he has to do is manage the comeback of Victor Cruz from his torn patellar tendon, handle the finicky hamstrings of Odell Beckham Jr. and get both players ready to star once the regular season opens.

"Yes, you always want expectations through the roof and that kind of pressure," Ryan said jokingly. "It's a dream."

Seriously, though, Beckham and Cruz are obviously critical to the Giants' success in 2015. Getting them ready while keeping them healthy is a critical task.

"It's great to get those guys back," Ryan said. "We're being careful with ‘em. They're on a pitch count. We're working ‘em smart."

Ryan said he "saw signs" in the spring that Cruz would be ready after suffering a torn patellar tendon Week 6 last season vs. the Philadelphia Eagles.

"I think his movement is good. The most important thing to me was how confident he'd feel getting in and out of breaks and really trusting it. He's got that confidence. I'm happy with what he's done so far and expect him to keep going."

Cruz has gone to the ground a few times during early training camp practices, including being knocked down on one occasion. Fans, and media members, hold their breath to see if the salsa-dancing star gets back without issue when that happens. Ryan said "absolutely not" when asked if he checked with Cruz the first time he went down.

"I didn't address it at all. It's football and I think he's got the confence. He's shown me that he's confident in what he can do coming off that injury. I didn't address it at all, Victor didn't mention it and we moved on to the next play."

As for Beckham, Ryan said his tremendous success as a rookie despite limited practice time didn't surprise him.

"The thing with Odell is he gets it. The game makes sense to him," Ryan said. "This is a football-smart guy.

"As far as being able to step up and make plays, to me when the stage gets bigger and the pressure gets bigger that guy gets bigger.

"As far as being able to step up and make plays, to me when the stage gets bigger and the pressure gets bigger that guy gets bigger."

Ryan said he think Beckham can get better. "I think it's critical and he understands that there's plenty of room for improvement, whether it's consistently beating man-press at the line of scrimmage with his releases, his routes, his top of the routes, his finishes. Every aspect of the game he can improve on."

Now, all Ryan has to do is make sure both guys are at the starting line for the Giants when the regular season begins.