August 1, 2013 New York Giants Training Camp Reports

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Aug 012013
 
David Wilson, New York Giants (July 27, 2013)

David Wilson – © USA TODAY Sports Images

August 1, 2013 New York Giants Training Camp Reports: The Giants held their fifth training camp practice on Thursday afternoon at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center. The next practice is on Friday from 1:30-3:45PM. For a complete training camp schedule and Giants.com Q&A guide, see the Training Camp section of the website.

Injury Update – Nicks Sits Out: Not practicing on Thursday were WR Hakeem Nicks (groin), FB Henry Hynoski (PUP – knee), OG Chris Snee (PUP – hip), DE Jason Pierre-Paul (PUP – back), DT Markus Kuhn (PUP – knee), and CB Terrell Thomas (PUP – knee).

“(Nicks) is being treated for a groin, it’s a day to day type thing,” said Head Coach Tom Coughlin. “They just want to quiet it down, make sure that he heals before he goes back out and continues to maybe make it worse…I want to see him on the field and he wants to be on the field. It’s frustrating, but I’ve got to learn to control myself when it comes to that as well and just realize that you know what, he’s trying like heck to get out there and he knows he needs to practice and work at it and he came in excited about being able to go and then he had this little groin injury, which I hope is not going to set him back for very long, but obviously they’re taking all the necessary precautions.”

“I think (Nicks) needs to practice,” said Wide Receivers Coach Kevin M. Gilbride. “He knows it. He and I talk about it all the time and he knows it. In order for you to be ready for the season, you need to have done it and done it over and over and done it wrong, made the adjustment and then have it become part of what you do, the correct way to do it. He’s not there yet, he needs to continue to improve and he knows that. He understands that. In order for him to be ready to produce the way that he wants to produce and the way that we need him to produce, he needs to practice and get ready for that.”

DT Cullen Jenkins was excused from practice due to the death of his grandmother.

OC David Baas (still recovering from various and undisclosed offseason surgeries) was limited in practice.

Giants Waived/Injured WR Jeremy Horne; Re-Sign WR Julian Talley: The Giants waived/injured WR Jeremy Horne on Thursday after he injured his foot in practice on Tuesday. To replace Horne’s spot on the roster, the team re-signed WR Julian Talley, who the Giants originally signed as a rookie free agent last year and waived in August 2012.

Ann Mara, John Mara, and Tom Coughlin to Attend Hall of Fame Ceremonies: Giants’ co-owner Ann Mara, Giants’ President/CEO John Mara, and Head Coach Tom Coughlin will attend the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies for former Giants’ head coach Bill Parcells on Saturday in Canton, Ohio.

Coach Media Q&As: Transcripts and video clips of Thursday’s media sessions with the following coaches are available at BigBlueInteractive.com or Giants.com:

Player Media Q&As: Transcripts and video of Thursday’s media Q&As with the following players are available at Giants.com:

P Steve Weatherford on ESPN Radio: The audio of P Steve Weatherford’s interview on ESPN Radio from Thursday is available at ESPN.com.

Article on Giants’ Training Camp: Five Early Stars of Giants Training Camp by Ralph Vacchiano of The Daily News

Article on WR Rueben Randle: Giants Looking for Randle to Complement Nicks, Cruz by Paul Schwartz of The New York Post

Article on DT Johnathan Hankins: Giants Rookie DT Johnathan Hankins is Shaping Up by Dave Hutchinson of The Star-Ledger

Article on the Defensive Backs:

Articles on Bill Parcells:

Quotes: Head Coach Tom Coughlin on TE Adrien Robinson and TE Larry Donnell: “Well, I think (Robinson is) making steady progress. You know, today I thought he practiced well, made some plays, and more importantly, from an assignment standpoint he did well, so, we look forward to having him continue that way because we also see Larry Donnell making a couple plays, so with those two big, young tight ends, they certainly do give us flexibility provided they can continue to improve.”

Wide Receivers Coach Kevin M. Gilbride on WR Louis Murphy: “Just, in general terms, great speed, great power, runs very sharp routes and is a tremendous professional. He’s studies our offense, he asks great questions, and so when you have a player like that who wants to learn it, who wants to put himself in a position to help the team and to put himself in the position to be successful, physically if he can do it, he’s going to do it. That’s what I’ve seen from him, he’s giving himself every opportunity to make an impact through this season.”

July 30, 2013 New York Giants Training Camp Reports

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Jul 302013
 
Jake Muasau (43), Kyle Bosworth (48), Mark Herzlich (58), Etienne Sabino (47), New York Giants (July 28, 2013)

Muasau, Bosworth, Herzlich, and Sabino – © USA TODAY Sports Images

July 30, 2013 New York Giants Training Camp Reports: The Giants held their fourth training camp practice on Tuesday afternoon at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center. The next practice is on Thursday from 1:30-3:45PM. For a complete training camp schedule and Giants.com Q&A guide, see the Training Camp section of the website.

Injury Update: Not practicing on Tuesday were FB Henry Hynoski (PUP – knee), OG Chris Snee (PUP – hip), DE Jason Pierre-Paul (PUP – back), DT Markus Kuhn (PUP – knee), and CB Terrell Thomas (PUP – knee).

“I’m going to do everything in my power to get back for the first game,” said Hynoski. “That’s my goal, that’s my intention, but ultimately that decision isn’t up to me. I want to just get back to playing football at the earliest possible date. Everything is going really well in rehab, making advances and strides every day. I’m just excited with my progress and I know that the trainers are happy with where I’m at too.”

WR Hakeem Nicks (groin) and OC David Baas (still recovering from various and undisclosed offseason surgeries) were limited in practice.

WR Jeremy Horne was carted off the field during practice. “I’m not sure (how he is),” said Head Coach Tom Coughlin. “They told me that he had some kind of a foot injury but I don’t know what to expect.”

Giants Worked Out FB Lawrence Vickers: According to press reports, the Giants recently worked out FB Lawerence Vickers, who has played for the Browns (2006-2010), Texans (2011), and Cowboys (2012). The Cowboys released him last month.

Head Coach Tom Coughlin’s Tuesday Press Conference: The transcript and video of Head Coach Tom Coughlin’s press conference on Tuesday are available at BigBlueInteractive.com and Giants.com, respectively.

Player Media Q&As: Transcripts and video of Tuesday’s media Q&As with the following players are available at Giants.com:

Article on Giants President/CEO John Mara: No Ultimatums, Just Expectations, from Giants’ Co-Owner by Paul Schwartz of The New York Post

Article on Head Coach Tom Coughlin: Despite Age and Accomplishments, Coughlin Has No Plans to Leave Giants Anytime Soon by Steve Serby of The New York Post

Articles on the Quarterbacks:

Articles on the Offensive Line:

Articles on the Defensive Backs:

Phil Simms on Bill Parcells: Parcells Was Demanding, But It Made Giants Champs by Phil Simms for The New York Post

 

Offseason Breakdown: New York Giants Wide Receivers (Part II)

 Posted by
May 282013
 
Kris Adams, New York Giants (May 22, 2013)

WR Kris Adams – © USA TODAY Sports Images

Offseason Breakdown: New York Giants Wide Receivers (Part II)

In Part I, we covered the three New York Giants wide receivers who are likely to make the team behind stalwarts Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz, namely Rueben Randle, Jerrel Jernigan, and Louis Murphy. Now we’ll turn our focus to the remaining five challengers: Ramses Barden, Brandon Collins, Kevin Hardy, Kris Adams, and Jeremy Horne.

It is not set in stone how many wide receivers the New York Giants will carry on the 53-man roster. But the team usually keeps six. That might be harder to do this year if the Giants keep three quarterbacks. Nevertheless, for now, let’s assume the Giants keep six. That means barring injury or something unforeseen, Barden, Collins, Hardy, Adams, and Horne will be fighting for one roster spot. It’s easy to dismiss the relevance of the sixth receiver. But just keep in mind that Victor Cruz was once considered “camp fodder” too.

Ramses Barden:

Drafted in 3rd round of the 2009 NFL Draft, Ramses Barden has been a disappointment. In four seasons, Barden has only had 29 receptions for 394 yards and no touchdowns. His best game as a pro came in Week 3 of the 2012 season, when he started against the Panthers and caught nine passes for 138 yards. But he only had five catches the rest of the season.

So why was Barden re-signed by the Giants? For one, you need bodies in camp to throw to, and the Giants usually carry at least 10 wide receivers heading into camp. Secondly, Barden knows the offense. If someone gets hurt and can’t play, it’s easier for him to come in and contribute more quickly because of that. Third, Barden does have some talent. He is a huge receiver (6-6, 224lbs) with long arms and decent athleticism. He has flashed as a player on the practice field and in regular-season games.

But for some reason, Barden simply hasn’t been able to be consistent contributor once the games count. He’s only been on the active regular-season roster 29 times in 64 chances. Some of that is due to injuries, but Barden also has never stood out as a special teams performer. It’s very tough to activate your fifth or sixth receiver on game day if he doesn’t contribute on special teams. In addition, as a receiver, Barden lacks ideal speed and quickness, and appears to have difficulty separating from tight, aggressive coverage, especially off of the line of scrimmage. Most importantly, with the exception of Week 3 in 2012, Barden simply has not consistently delivered on the playing field.

Barden will have to fight to make the 2013 team. He has a decent chance to make it if none of the other wide receivers impress because, again, he knows the system and therefore would be a good insurance policy if someone gets hurt. Even if he makes it, however, unless he dramatically improves or someone gets hurt, he’ll likely be inactive for most games once again.

Brandon Collins:

Brandon Collins lacks ideal size (5-11, 180lbs) but he has very good speed (4.4) and quickness. Collins also has collegiate experience returning punts.

The Giants originally signed Brandon Collins as a rookie free agent after he impressed at the May 2012 rookie mini-camp. Collins stood out again a month later at the full-team mini-camp in June 2012. “I think Brandon Collins has looked really, really impressive in practices,” said Offensive Coordinator Kevin Gilbride. “That has been fun to see, because I didn’t know much about him…I have seen better quickness than anything…more quickness than speed. Good speed, great quickness, but also picking up the offense pretty quick.”

Raised expectations fizzled out shortly thereafter as Collins did not have a catch in the first three preseason games and was waived before the last preseason contest. He spent some time on the Giants’ Practice Squad in September but was not with the team for most of the season. Nevertheless, it appears that the Giants saw enough in Collins to bring him back for one more go-around as they re-signed him in January.

Kevin Hardy:

Kevin Hardy was originally signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted rookie free agent after the 2012 NFL Draft. The Saints waived him in August 2012. The Giants signed him in January 2013. Hardy has ordinary size (6-0, 182lbs), but he has very good speed (4.4 range) and leaping ability (37 inch vertical). He also has collegiate experience as a kickoff returner. Hardy is very raw, having played in a college offense at the Citadel that only threw the ball 75 times his senior season. Hardy only had four catches for 53 yards and one touchdown in 2011.

Kris Adams:

Kris Adams was originally signed by the Chicago Bears and an undrafted rookie free agent after the 2011 NFL Draft. He did not make the team but spent time on the Practice Squads of the Bears, Rams, and Vikings in 2011. The Colts signed him in June 2012. Adams impressed in offseason workouts and caught five passes for 90 yards for Indianapolis in the preseason. He made the team and caught two passes for 26 yards in September, but the Colts then moved Adams to the Practice Squad in October. The Giants signed Adams in January 2013.

Adams has a nice combination of size (6-3, 194lbs) and athletic ability (4.4-range in the 40, 39.5 vertical jump, 6.97 3-cone), but he needs a lot of technique work, especially with his route running. Nevertheless, Adams has demonstrated an ability to threaten defenses down the field with his speed. Although he is capable of the circus catch, he needs to become more consistent catching the football. Adams has not stood on on special teams at the pro level.

Jeremy Horne:

The Giants signed Jeremy Horne in May 2013 after he impressed at the rookie mini-camp as tryout player. Indeed, Horne convinced the Giants to waive very talented undrafted rookie free agent WR Marcus Davis out of Virginia Tech, deciding to swallow the $15,000 signing bonus they gave Davis.

Horne played at the University of Massachusetts with Victor Cruz and was considered by some to be the better NFL prospect. Horne was originally signed as an undrafted rookie free agent by the Kansas City Chiefs after the 2010 NFL Draft. Horne spent time on both the Chiefs’ practice squad and 53-man roster until he was finally released in August 2012. He has only played in 12 games with no catches. Horne has good size (6-2, 193lbs) and athletic ability (4.4 speed). He also has experience returning kickoffs.

“This guy’s a young player that has a certain skill set that is unique at times,” said former Chiefs’ Head Coach Todd Haley.

(Warning: Explicit Lyrics)

On the surface, these five do not look like an overly impressive group. One gets the strong impression that Barden only came back to the Giants when the other 31 teams in the NFL expressed little interest. Collins was waived by the Giants last year and Hardy, Adams, and Horne have been waived by other teams. Yet the Giants have seen enough in each to at least give all five a legitimate shot at a spot on the 53-man roster. And they liked these five over any other available undrafted rookies. Will any one of these five players make a strong impression at training camp and the preseason? Special teams play could be the determining factor.