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The Giants had two buses leaving the team’s training facility Wednesday night, just down the street from MetLife Stadium.
There was one at 5:55 p.m., and another a little after 6 p.m.
Joe Judge took the last bus with only two other people: another coach and another player. There’s a reason – everyone was thrilled to be playing in front of fans again for the first time since 2019, even if it was just practice.
“They were eager to come here,” the judge said Wednesday evening.
Fans couldn’t wait either. Many were following the stadium several hours before training even began, in the 90+ degree heat, not to mention the humidity. At one point, a group of fans ran for a ride in the parking lot in honor of Judge’s training methods.
As Daniel Jones exited the tunnel to practice, they applauded.
When a running back had a fumble and a certain stretch had a fall, they booed.
Things seemed … normal.
There was a lull in the middle of the practice – there still is. Most workouts are pretty boring, especially if the fans expect non-stop scrums – but the energy was palpable. After practice, many players ran to pump the crowd, tossing jerseys in the stands. Linebacker Blake Martinez signed a jersey for a fan.
Leonard Williams went section by section, swelling the fans. There were fireworks. Show.
“Unbelievable. Outstanding,” said the judge of the atmosphere. “It’s very different, you hear the noise practicing music. But when you are in the end zone and you have the noise of the fan right there, we have to get used to it.You hear music in practice, but when there are people shouting out the names of the players, you have to stay focused and focused through it.
In the end, the practice itself was not particularly intense. But a lot has happened.
Here are five observations from the Fan Fest at MetLife on Wednesday night, the 13th training camp:
Some errors have occurred
Since they were mentioned, let’s get rid of those first: There were two moments in particular that drew boos during the team drills.
The first was a Devontae Booker fumble on his first postponement of the night in an 11v11. He was booed and momentarily taken out of the lineup, replaced by Corey Clement. It was at least his second fumble at training camp, both coming from his first training. Not ideal.
The other: Evan Engram dropped a pass from Daniel Jones in 7-7 drills in the red zone on a ball from the quarterback. Fans have been looking forward to being able to scream about this sort of thing since 2019.
Full-back Eli Penny also suffered a fall during the end zone team drills (11-11) on a pass from Mike Glennon.
Daniel Jones night
Jones was solid Wednesday night. He started things off with a nice pass from a cross to Darius Slayton, who beat cornerback Rodarius Williams on the field. He made three consecutive shots against Sterling Shepard and five in total to start training.
He missed Slayton on back-to-back throws, one where Williams got the upper hand over Slayton and got a pass break, another where no one was open so Jones tried to force him back to Slayton with Madre Harper covering him closely.
Jones threw a few touchdowns into the end zone drills at the end of training to running back Alfred Morris (after moving away from the pressure) and tight end Cole Hikutini, who had a few good practices. in a row. If the Giants ultimately keep four ends tight – or Kyle Rudolph isn’t ready for Week 1 – Hikutini is positioning himself to fight for a berth in the roster with his recent play.
Cornerback Isaac Yiadom also forced a failed pass attempt to Dante Pettis.
All in all, I had Jones at complete 7 of 11 passes combined between the 7v7 and 11v11 exercises, although I may have missed a handful. (A few details: the media had to take an elevator to the field with about 30 minutes of practice before our interview with the judge after practice.)
At this point, who is not rest or hurt yourself …
Maybe bigger news. The Giants continue to give some players a big dose of rest, while taking a slow approach with some of their injured guys.
Running back Saquon Barkley was relieved after two days of participating in all the individual drills. The judge actually called it a “withdrawal” day.
Rookie wide receiver Kadarius Toney has had a day of “maintenance” and has done nothing but run to the side. Toney only trained thoroughly once or twice throughout training camp.
Kenny Golladay appears to be making progress as he worked with the JUGS machine before training and sprinted into one of the end zones during team drills with the latter progressing in his return from a hamstring injury. Tight end Kyle Rudolph was just a spectator, as he was the whole camp.
Wide receiver John Ross was out after injuring himself a few days ago. Center Jonotthan Harrison, cornerback Jarren Williams and outside linebacker Ifeadi Odenigbo were also not spotted on the field. Running back Gary Brightwell and wide receiver Austin Mack ran sideways.
Guard Shane Lemieux also did not participate in the team drills, although it was probably also for the interview. Outside linebacker Lorenzo Carter remains out with a calf injury.
Guard Kenny Wiggins left training at one point and was checked by coaches before eventually returning. Reserve center Brett Heggie also left training and was checked but did not return. Security Jabrill Peppers entered the locker room early, possibly due to cramps. The judge said he was fine.
On the bright side, outside linebacker Azeez Ojulari returned to training and raced with the first team as usual.
The Giants face the Jets on Saturday night and it’s unclear exactly who will be available to play.
Ryan Santoso: the boot
The save kicker deserves his own observation. He was on the money when given the opportunity in practice, scoring a few field goals from nearly 60 yards last week.
On Wednesday, Santoso was 6 for 7 on field goals, including a few marks from over 55 yards.
Since the Giants are attached to Graham Gano, it might not hurt to pass Santoso over to a team that needs kickers for draft compensation. He should have even more opportunities to impress in the preseason.
Miscellaneous Notes:
–The Giants signed two players on Wednesday, and surprisingly neither are offensive linemen. Quite the contrary, in fact: they added defensive linemen Elie Qualls and Willie henri. Qualls is a former Eagles draft pick who hasn’t played in a game since 2017. Henry has spent time in recent years with the Ravens and 49ers. Body for the preseason game. Based on how Wednesday’s practice unfolded, the Giants will likely add more offensive linemen at some point.
There was a series of position drills where the assistant offensive line coach Ben wilkerson was running to the left guard. He’s a former NFL offensive lineman, to his credit.
– The reserves continue to drop a lot of pressure. Outside linebacker Trent Harris has a “bag” on Mike glennon late in practice without too much of a problem, with another defender crouching nearby. Daniel Jones also had to relieve the pressure a few times with the starting offensive line. When Wiggins – who replaced Lemieux – came out briefly, it was in sophomore. Kyle murphy who joined the left guard with the first team.
– I’ve had Mike glennon by completing 5 of 10 assists on Wednesday. He fought for a touchdown on the red zone drills, but otherwise he still looks like… Mike Glennon.
– Receiver JC Council showed a nice flurry on a kick return. I hadn’t seen him come back to the camp much yet.
– The Giants practice Thursday afternoon in what will likely be a light day before Saturday’s game. They are on leave on Friday.
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Zack Rosenblatt can be reached at [email protected]. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
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