East Rutherford, N.J. — NFL training camps are well underway across the league and the Giants hit the field for the second day of camp at Quest Diagnostic Training Center. With a new head coach and general manager, New York is trying to build a winning team in blue once again.
Day two featured plenty of work as Daniel Jones tried to get into sync with the offensive unit and a saw a few players getting reps in at positions that they aren’t normally known to play.
Here are five observations from Giants camp on Thursday.
Daniel Jones Struggles
Before everyone goes crazy, it’s key to remember that Jones is in a new offense and is learning the system along with the rest of his team.
That doesn’t mean he gets a pass for a struggling day though.
At times in team drills, Jones looked unsure where to go with the ball which led to numerous defensive deflections.
You could tell very easily that the day would not be kind to Jones. He missed open routes in warm-ups that were only prolonged later in practice.
Without a doubt, his best drive came in the final team drill where Daboll and the coaching staff had him move outside the pocket. Jones looked far more comfortable on the run as usual & which resulted in a touchdown at the end of the session.
It wasn’t the cleanest day for Jones but ending on a good note is important for momentum this early in camp.
QB’s starting to get work in with receivers today. pic.twitter.com/yrVr9dXL0Q
— Nick Faria (@Nick_Faria1720) July 28, 2022
Receivers were overwhelmed
While Jones struggled at times, his receivers did no favors for him throughout practice.
Kedarius Toney dropped multiple open passes and was often manhandled in red zone drills.
By far the most disappointing receiver was Kenny Golladay. Golladay is a big-play, jump-ball receiver who struggled to get any traction last season. It was more of the same Wednesday morning. Golladay appeared to make an open catch over the middle but Julien Love broke up the pass & knocked the ball out of Golladay’s hands. Add in an inability to get any separation against corners and it wasn’t Golladay’s best day.
Steve Slayton also had a difficult day. He dropped numerous passes and disappeared in team drills. With the emergence of Toney and Robinson, Slayton could very well be the odd man out.
There were some standouts. Collin Johnson and CJ Board made some nice catches, and Austin Proehl caught the touchdown that ended the practice.
But overall a disappointing day for the starting groups.
Safeties Stand Out
While the receivers struggled, it was an impressive day for Julien Love and Xavier McKinney.
The projected starters at safety, McKinney made life miserable for Golladay in the red zone. It’s an important note with the Giants having questions at corner. In a division loaded with jump ball receivers, McKinney showing his flexibility is important.
Then there’s Julien Love. Love made it a point to note he preferred to be up at the line of scrimmage but he made the defensive play of the day.
Golladay was open by five yards but right before he was able to secure the catch, Love jumped up and deflected the ball away. It was a great play and highlighted that the Giants have some really impressive pieces at safety this year.
Kedarius Toney got a nice little ovation running across the field pic.twitter.com/G8L7dqgYyH
— Nick Faria (@Nick_Faria1720) July 28, 2022
Giants try Robinson, Toney in backfield
Daboll talked about being creative with the players he had and using their skillsets to his advantage. That was on displays a bit during the second day of training camp with Wan’Dale Robinson and Kadarius Toney lining up in the backfield on during team drills.
Both receivers looked like they could be explosive out of the backfield, in particular Robinson who at one point found a hole a blew through it. Robinson had already been talked about quite a bit heading into the start of camp after he had a breakout spring.
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“He’s another smart, instinctive player,”Daboll said about Robinson. “We put him through a lot of tests and things like that before we drafted him. … He’s a good young player to work with.”
New look offensive line
Day 2 of camp was another look at the revamped offensive line for the Giants. New York’s seventh overall pick Evan Neal and Andrew Thomas both looked good at the tackle positions, but it was the second unit that raised some questions. While it may be just the second day of on-field work, the play of the second group was enough to start wondering about the depth the Giants will have at the position this season.
New York had focused on that during the offseason after struggling last year. Giving Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley and the rest of the backfield solid protection had been general manager Joe Schoen’s top priority.
