It may be hard to believe, but we’re already through two weeks of training camp and the preseason is just around the bend for the New York Giants.
On Thursday, Big Blue will square off with their cross town rivals, the New York Jets, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey — just yards from where the Giants have been practicing this summer.
With Week 2 of camp now in the books, we’re going to take a quick look back at nine things that were learned over the last seven days.
Eli Manning is the unquestioned starter
If the Giants did have an open quarterback competition to start camp, Manning has managed to close the door on it in just two weeks.
That’s not a knock on rookie Daniel Jones — we’ll get to him momentarily — but rather, a reflection of just how dominant Manning has been so far this summer.
After spending his offseason working out with a baseball trainer, Manning has returned in 2019 in noticeably good shape and with a noticeably stronger arm.
Some may argue that Manning’s arm isn’t capable of getting stronger at this age, but don’t tell that to his teammates or coaches.
“Eli looks really good. He’s been slinging the ball around a lot, and there’s a lot of velocity, and he still has his touch. He’s Eli, he’s been making great throws for years, but definitely you can see his confidence, and you can see his confidence really growing this camp,” tight end Evan Engram said.
Manning has been particularly strong with his underneath passes and in the intermediate game, but has seen his only struggles come on the long ball. That could be a product of receiver injuries or perhaps he’s just readjusting his accuracy deep.
Either way, the struggles have been so minimal that they’re almost not noteworthy.
Daniel Jones throws a beautiful deep ball
Daniel Jones has had the expected ups and downs of a rookie in his first training camp, but his highs have been extremely high, while his lows have been of the usual variety.
Ironically, the one area in which Jones has specifically thrived is the only area in which Manning has struggled — deep down the field.
Jones has shown a completely fearless approach to uncorking bombs of 50-plus yards down the field, much to the delight of his teammates. But beyond that, Jones has been dropping those passes on a dime and receiving rave reviews as a result.
“It was outstanding. He’s made excellent throws in every practice, and that was evidence to me that he has the arm to play in this league. We sort of knew that before we picked him. We’ve seen it throughout the training, and that was actually a very good throw,” head coach Pat Shurmur told reporters.
Running back Paul Perkins, who was on the receiving end of an impressive 50-yard bomb, said that reception was the single greatest pass he’s ever caught. Wide receiver Russell Shepard also said Jones throws “the best deep ball” he’s ever seen.
Corey Ballentine is shining
The Giants added three talented young defensive backs in the 2019 NFL Draft, but Deandre Baker and Julian Love have received the bulk of the attention.
However, that may be poised to change after Week 2.
This was the week of Ballentine, as the young rookie, who is overcoming a horrific shooting that took the life of his best friend, Dwane Simmons, dominated in every single aspect.
Thus far in camp, Daniel Jones has been picked off just twice — each at the hands of Ballentine, who made a beautiful play on a well-thrown ball in Saturday’s afternoon practice. The rookie added several pass break-ups as well, to go along with his touchdown-saving goal-line tackle of wide receiver T.J. Jones.
“I feel like I’m catching up because of the older guys in the room,” said Ballentine. “A lot of them will help us and stay after meetings to help us learn run fits, learn plays, and they’ll help us once we get back to the hotel as well. So, with the help of them and my teammates, and just extra studying, I think I caught up pretty well.”
Injuries remain a very real problem
The Giants found themselves quite banged up over the first week of camp, having lost most of their wide receiver depth due to injury. The bug also touched a few other positional groups.
The hope was that it was just Week 1 rust being knocked off, but the issue has persisted in Week 2.
Cornerback Grant Haley went down with a shoulder injury, rookie linebacker Mark McLaurin was placed on injured reserve with a broken foot, offensive lineman George Asafo-Adjei remains sidelined with a concussion and cornerback Sam Beal, who we’ll address further in a moment, can’t stay on the field.
In total, nine players were sidelined for Saturday’s practice, and that doesn’t even include wide receiver Sterling Shepard, who is working his way back from a fractured thumb.
Sam Beal is falling too far behind
Beal missed his entire rookie season after suffering a shoulder injury, but returned to start 2019 with a clear mind and the motivation to earn a starting job.
For a brief and fleeting moment this spring, Beal flashed and provided the team optimism that if nothing else, he’d battle for a starting spot and find a way to produce at a quality clip this season.
Then he went down injured again.
As training camp arrived, Beal was back on the field, but only briefly. He again went down with an injury, this time to his groin/hamstring, and remained sidelined until earlier this week.
The sophomore cornerback manager to take part in individual drills on Tuesday, but that would be about it. Beal ended the week once again sidelined and there is no clear timetable for his return.
With Deandre Baker, Julian Love and Corey Ballentine all playing exceptionally well, Beal is falling so far behind that he may not be able to catch back up.
The suspension of Golden Tate is going to hurt
Losing veteran receiver Golden Tate for the first quarter of the season is going to hurt — that’s the most obvious statement that could be made. But after seeing how well he works with Manning after just two weeks, it’s important to note just how devastating that suspension could be.
Tate has lit up every single summer practice thus far, showing an incredible ability to find cracks in the defense and settle into open space for Manning to make a clear throw.
Beyond that, Tate has put his good hands and YAC ability on display, dominating in the intermediate game and creating opportunities for other players.
Manning and Tate look like a veteran duo that have appeared in 100-plus games together and losing that outlet and security blanket is going to be extremely detrimental to Eli early on.
Giants offensive line is going old-school
If you banked on Mike Remmers and Kevin Zeitler having an immediate impact on the Giants’ offensive line, congratulations, you hit that nail right on the head.
The sudden influx of veteran knowledge and leadership has rapidly reshaped the attitude of the offensive line. In addition to improved communication thanks to years and years of experience, the Giants’ offensive line has been putting in extra work and it’s already showing in terms of mentality.
This is no longer a group of players uncertain about their potential and ability to play alongside one another, but rather, a pack of men with a gritty, angry and old-school mentality.
“I just think there’s a more serious focus, I would say more of an old-school approach, and that’s what the players bring,” offensive line coach Hal Hunter told the media on Thursday. “We’ve got some good young players coming up, so there’s a little bit of competition in there. There’s a real focused, determined, work ethic going on right now.”
Regardless of what happens at center between Jon Halapio and Spencer Pulley, this is a group thriving on continuity and communication, and there’s little doubt they will be much more product than any Giants line in the recent past.
B.J. Goodson could be on the bubble
Goodson entered camp as the presumed starter alongside veteran Alec Ogletree, but because Tae Davis and rookie Ryan Connelly have played so well, Goodson is no longer a shoo-on.
Moreover, Goodson has been hindered by a hamstring injury, and while it’s not considered a major issue, it has put him further behind the eight ball.
Goodson has been taking snaps with the third-team defense, which isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement for the veteran, and other Giants beat writers are beginning to notice. Pat Training of Inside Football also recently pointed this out.
I’m starting to get a strong hunch that B.J. Goodson might be on the bubble. Goodson plays the game so physically, and it’s that physical style of play that ends up costing him practice time due to injuries.
Plus, when you factor into the equation that Ryan Connelly has been cashing in on taking Goodson’s reps with the starters, while Tae Davis has been handling the nickel backer role, and I wouldn’t be stunned if Goodson doesn’t make this team.
Cody Latimer is making noise
Largely a forgotten man, Cody Latimer has stepped up in a big way following a slew of injuries at the wide receiver position.
Not only has Latimer become a favorite target of Eli Manning, but he’s stepped up in the locker-room and has been leading the younger players, taping into his early career mistakes as example of what not to do.
“Coming into the league, having a lot of money, I wasn’t focused,” Latimer told NJ Advance Media. “It took me years to get settled. It took me getting benched. It took me getting kicked off the field — because I didn’t know what I was doing a couple times — to learn. Year 3 was the year that really caught on: ‘This is what I’m supposed to do, this is how I’m supposed to study, this is how I’m supposed to prepare.’
“Nowadays, I try to pass it on to the young cats here every single day. I check in on them every single day, make sure they’re studying, because it’s the little things. We can all actually play football. That’s our God-given talent. But it’s mental and the little things that matter. That’s what I’ve learned.”
In addition to an increased offensive role and his locker-room leadership, Latimer has also become a key on special teams following the loss of return man Corey Coleman (torn ACL).
