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EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – “Unbelievable.”
That’s how New York Giants coach Joe Judge described the energy of training Wednesday night in front of a crowd announced to about 29,000 raving fans at the team’s “Fan Fest” at the. MetLife Stadium.
It was the first time the Giants have played in front of their fan base, other than a closed practice in front of a few thousand fans at a local high school, since the end of the 2019 season.
“Unbelievable. Exceptional,” said an obviously excited judge at the end of practice. “It’s very different, you hear the noise in practice, the music, but when you’re in the end zone you have the fan noise right there. Listen, there’s a very different stimulus in the game that we have to get used to being a part of. “
The judge said re-familiarizing players with crowd noise was a big part of Wednesday’s goal.
“You hear music in practice, but when there are people calling out the names of the players, calling out your names, you have to stay focused and focused through that,” Judge said. “It’s the first time we’ve had this kind of noise since we’ve been here. We are at this point. We’re glad they’re back.
The media present spent most of the practice in the press gallery. We were allowed to sit on the sidelines for the last few minutes, and the energy was absolutely something that could be felt on the pitch.
Practical observations
- It just had to happen, right? Evan Engram dropped a short pass from Daniel Jones 7v7 and was booed vigorously. It’s the only pass I’ve seen Engram drop in training camp so far.
- I was trying to keep up with Daniel Jones’ every throw, but lost track as the media moved from the sixth floor press box to pitch level. In the shots I was able to call, Jones got 9 of 14.
- Ryan Santoso managed two set kicking sessions while Graham Gano rested. Santoso went 6 of 7, making a pair of 54-yard attempts with relative ease. His only failure was a 58-yard attempt that he pushed just to the left.
- Running back Devontae Booker missed the opening game 11-11, resulting in him being replaced by Corey Clement.
- The judge cut what was to be a two-hour workout to a few short periods with threatening weather conditions in the area. It turned out to be a good decision. Shortly after the post-workout fireworks show ended, a thunderstorm that included frightening lightning began.
- There is always one. A Philadelphia Eagles fan wearing a DeVonta Smith jersey was seated in the front row when Wednesday’s practice began.
Workout buddies
The judge mentioned on Tuesday that he paired linebacker Blake Martinez with Saquon Barkley, who is still recovering from last season’s ACL tear, in drills Barkley participates in.
“We did an exercise (Monday) yesterday where it’s a contactless, just a kind of spatial tracing,” the judge said. “We don’t do it as a tackle drill, and I told Saquon he was on his feet, I said to Blake Martinez, ‘You have Saquon’, because I know these guys can work with respect. and what they’re going to do against each other. These are just two guys that we trust Saquon can execute the technique, build his rehab, get into a football move. Blake can work whatever. he’s going to do, and we also know he’s not going to do anything and make a mistake that someone else might do. I don’t blame any of our players, but sometimes you can have someone who is maybe a little out of his hallway and we want to make sure we keep him safe.
It turns out that this is nothing new. Martinez said it started last year.
“I think last year whenever we did things it was always me and Saquon,” Martinez said. “Every time he showed up for a certain competitive exercise, and things like that, I made sure to be there. It’s kind of like saying it again, iron sharpens the iron type of thing. Also, with Saquon coming back with his injury, and things like that, I think the coach trusts me. He knows that we are going to do the necessary work, but no kind of funny business or anything out of control will happen during these exercises.
“We like it”
Count the safety Jabrill Peppers among the players who adamantly defend Joe Judge, whose old-fashioned methods draw criticism from outside sources who are not present on the squad with any regularity, if at all.
“I mean, guys here, we love it. We like coaches who train us hard, who are going to tell us how it’s going, and not water anything down, ”said Peppers. “He’s going to push you into places that you can’t take on your own. I just think if you don’t like being trained hard then you are not going to like it here.
Clear up your stories, guys!
General manager Dave Gettleman told Sirius XM NFL Radio on Tuesday that fourth-round pick Elerson Smith, who did not train substantially during camp, suffered a hamstring injury during a race from conditioning before camp.
The judge was surprised when asked about it on Wednesday morning.
“It was absolutely not a trick or a conditioning test of this nature. That is not what happened at all,” said the judge.
Hmm. Curious.
The line assistant arrives … in defense
The Giants made a series of roster changes on Wednesday, adding defensive linemen Elijah Qualls and Willie Henry, and cutting wide receiver Derrick Dillon, linebacker Cale Garrett and defensive lineman RJ McIntosh, a choice of fifth round in 2018.
The churn rate is something we should all be used to by now. The Giants are using that time to keep looking for help from the sidelines, and that’s fine. It remains interesting, however, that no offensive lineman has been added yet.
If the Giants aren’t going to play the starters on Saturday against the New York Jets, and veterans Jonotthan Harrison and Nate Solder are limited by injury, they’ll be very skinny on the entry line in the opening game of the pre-season.
did not practice
The list of players who did not participate in training, or who were extremely limited, was looooong.
- Running back Saquon Barkley got dressed but was held up after training on Monday and Tuesday.
- Rookie wide receiver Kadarius Toney hasn’t practiced. The judge said it was a maintenance day for the first-round pick.
- Wide receiver Kenny Golladay (hamstring), wide receiver Austin Mack, wide receiver John Ross, running back Gary Brightwell, defenseman Elerson Smith, center Jonotthan Harrison and defensive back Chris Milton did not meet. not trained either. Offensive tackle Nate Solder did individual work, but no team exercise.
- Reserve offensive linemen Kenny Wiggins and Brett Heggie each left training in 11-on-11 drills to be checked for unknown injuries. At one point during a practice session, the Giants were so short of offensive linemen that assistant coach Ben Wilkerson, a former NFL player, lined up on left guard.
- Jabrill Peppers left training early with cramps.
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