We're already about a week into training camp and stuff has already gone down, but I figured we could still use a catalogue of training camp reports. I basically trust Ralph Vacchiano's and Mike Garafalo's reporting the most, so this thread will consist of their reports. If you've got any opinions or other articles, feel free to post them. The first couple posts will be catchup.
Vacciano was just on WFAN. Most of what he said was obvious, but here are some things I remember that weren't - Said that he thoght Sam Mitchell had a chance to start and he wasn't convinced about Corey Webster. - Said David Carr is so gun shy, Anthony Wright is still the favorite to win the backup QB job. - Said Darcy Johnson might play a lot and he has a chance to beat out Kevin Boss, as he would have last year if he didn't get injured - Said Coughlin would rather use a 3rd receiver like Steve Smith than a TE to catch passes, which is pretty obvious but still interesting. - RAVED about Kenny Phillips. Said he gives the Giants something they have never had. Quote "He's gonna hurt somebody, either on his own team or the other team". Said he has "incredible closing speed" and appears out of nowhere at the ball "whether he is in position or not". - Said Kiwanuka was supposed to only practice in the mornings, but he convinced the staff to let him go full bore and he has not missed a snap or had any slowdown or complications whatsoever. He will play LB be on the field with Tuck and Osi on passing downs so they can terrorize QBs once again this season.
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">WEDNESDAY JULY 23RD, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Just cleaning up some loose ends from a busy first day of camp: *WR David Tyree will be unable to practice, coach Tom Coughlin said. It's unclear at this point if he will be placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. Coughlin said that decision will be made after the team takes a look at Tyree tomorrow. If the team puts Tyree on the PUP list, all that means is he's eligible to be kept there for the first six weeks of the regular season without counting against the roster. He can come off at any time before the season, but must remain there until the day after the sixth game until the ninth week. The Giants do not gain a roster spot during camp by putting Tyree or anybody else on the PUP list. 4:21 p.m, UPDATE Just to clarify because I got an e-mail asking to explain this: Tyree "must remain (on the PUP list) until the day after the sixth game BUT BEFORE the ninth week." That's when you're eligible to be activated if, and only if, you're on the PUP list at the start of the regular season. Carry on. *CB Sam Madison and LB Danny Clark are both recovering from sports hernias. They figure to be limited to one practice a day for at least the start of camp. LB Mathias Kiwanuka and RB Derrick Ward (broken legs) might also be limited, though Coughlin said the ultra-competitive Kiwanuka will probably fight to practice both sessions. *Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said Kiwanuka will remain in his current position at LB for "right now," but said he and the defensive coaches will "play with some things." Maybe he means this. *When asked who's going to be the leader on defense now that Michael Strahan is retired, Spagnuolo said he has a few guys in mind. At first he refused to name them, but later mentioned LB Antonio Pierce is a "tremendous leader" and played that role last year with Strahan. *The starting CBs for now will be Aaron Ross and Corey Webster, with open competition behind them from Sam Madison, Kevin Dockery, rookie Terrell Thomas and others. *Who will win the two starting safety spots? "I have absolutely no idea," safeties coach Dave Merritt said. What he means is there will be excellent competition between James Butler, Michael Johnson, Sammy Knight and rookie Kenny Phillips. More on Phillips in a few minutes. *And finally, on the first day of camp, I didn't see any coaches or staff members wearing a Super Bowl ring. It was no accident. "You know what the best part is?" Merritt said. "Nobody told us not to wear them. But everybody seemed to know not to wear them. We realize last year's over. Time to go get the next one. So I just left mine on the table at home yesterday and told my wife to go ahead and put it in the bank."</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Kenny Phillips' play for the ages</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Back in minicamp, rookie S Kenny Phillips made an awesome diving play to either break up a pass or intercept it. The final ruling on that play is still somewhat in doubt. Whatever the result, that play still has the Giants' defensive coaches gushing. "I haven't seen a play like that and I've been around the NFL. Not for a long time but over 13, 14 years," safeties coach Dave Merritt said this afternoon as training camp opened. "For this kid to be playing half-field (coverage) on the right, get his feet turned, run and track the ball in the air, jump over everybody's head like Superman ... and whether he caught it or not, I don't know, but I started running after him, giving him a high five. Unbelievable play." So unbelievable that defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo mentioned it again today - unprovoked - when asked if he was looking forward to the competition at the safety position in general. "Yeah, especially after we say Kenny make that play in the spring," Spagnuolo said. "That was a tremendous play. ... In that setting, where we have no pads on ... again, real football is coming up here shortly, especially on the defensive side of the ball ... but it was impressive." Was that one play enough for the coaches to suddenly formulate a different opinion of Phillips? "It's enough for you to say, 'That's why we drafted him. That's what we looking for,'" Merritt said of the 31st overall pick and former Miami Hurricane. "Because on the Miami film, it was hard to find plays like that on Kenny because he was down (in the box) a lot. But you knew he had the range because you look at his 40 time, you look at his shuttle time and all that, so you know the kid has the ability to go play the deep middle. For the kid to play a half and go get it ... I mean, you look at some plays when he was playing the middle post and he was getting from the middle to the sideline. It was very nice to see that." When asked, based on that play and others, if the 6-2, 208-pound Phillips has long-striding speed or quick-patter speed, Merritt said, "He has both. And the thing is, his size, he has the height, has the long-arm wingspan, so this kid has a bunch of potential." Yeah, but come on, let's answer the real question: Did he catch that ball in June? Or did it hit the ground. "You know what," Merritt said with a laugh when told Spagnuolo ruled it an interception, "he caught it."</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div>
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">THURSDAY JULY 24TH, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Injury Report</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>The Giants have released their first injury report of camp. It's pretty long, so bear with me on this: *WR Plaxico Burress (ankle), DE Osi Umenyiora (hip), CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) and LBs Mathias Kiwanuka (leg), Danny Clark (sports hernia) and Zak DeOssie (back) will all be practicing only once per day to start camp. *QB David Carr (foot sprain), WR David Tyree (knee), LB Gerris Wilkinson (knee) and OL Jonathan Palmer (quad strain) will not be ready to practice. No word yet on whether or not Tyree will be placed on the PUP list. 3:24 p.m. UPDATE Tyree has been placed on the PUP list. Again, he can be taken off at any time, but if he's on there come Week 1, he must remain on there until the Week 6-9 window, during which he must be activated or placed on IR. "Our injury situation going into camp is pretty much what we expected, but it puts a greater premium on practicing efficiently and smartly as we start working, given the roster size (80 players)," coach Tom Coughlin said in the team's release. *On Wilkinson, Coughlin said, "Gerris has soreness in his kneecap. He dislocated his kneecap in camp last year, and the soreness he is experiencing now is connected to that injury, so we have to wait and see on him. David Carr strained his foot working out last week, and again, we are in a wait and see mode with him." *On why the team cancelled its scheduled conditioning test: "Because of the rains, the fields are all soaked. We were going to do some tempo running on the track rather than our normal conditioning test on the field. I did not want to tear up the fields or have guys pulling or straining muscles on a slippery field, but when we still had heavy rain at 12:30, I decided that we would just meet this afternoon. I am pleased with how the players showed up. We had just one player show up overweight, and that was by two pounds." *On who didn't show yet: "We had four players (Kenny Phillips, Sammy Knight, Anthony Wright and Kay-Jay Harris) held up by the weather traveling here, but they will be here by 2:30, and then everybody will be here."</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div>
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">FRIDAY JULY 25TH, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Morning Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. -- And now, your first practice report of 2008 training camp: *As mentioned in the previous entry, WR Plaxico Burress was out, but we're not sure yet if it's the ankle or his contract that kept him sidelined. *LB Zak DeOssie (back) was the other one-a-day guy sitting out this morning. CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) and LBs Mathias Kiwanuka (leg) and Danny Clark (sports hernia) all practiced, which means they'll sit out this afternoon. *QB David Carr (foot strain/non-football injury list), WR David Tyree (knee/PUP), LB Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and OL Jonathan Palmer (quad/PUP) did not practice, as expected. *The first play of the team session was a stretch handoff to RB Brandon Jacobs. Clark stayed home on the cutback to make the stop and appeared to trip Jacobs. But wanting to prove his durability (and his wish to play in all 16 games, of course), Jacobs popped right up and kept jogging upfield. *The second play was a 40-yard bomb down the right sideline from QB Eli Manning to WR Amani Toomer past CB Corey Webster. The crowd, which was live this morning, went nuts after that one. *WR Sinorice Moss took a handoff on a gorgeous end around. And then he fumbled after a light slap by CB R.W. McQuarters knocked the ball loose. McQuarters later had great coverage on Moss down the right sideline. The ball was overthrown by rookie QB Andre' Woodson. And then, to tease us once again with his potential, he made an awesome catch on a go down the right sideline from Manning past CB Geoffrey Pope. And then, sigh, he had one go through his hands on a quick hook. *Woodson had a rough couple of plays midway through practice when he fell down while handing the ball off and then threw outside of WR Brandon London, who ran an in cut. Tough to tell who was wrong on that one. Also tough to tell who was wrong when Woodson tried to hand off to RB Kay-Jay Harris and the ball was fumbled. Later, Woodson was clearly in the wrong when he threw out of bounds on a fade down the right sideline to WR Steve Smith. *TE Kevin Boss won a nice, physical matchup with LB Antonio Pierce on one play. Boss fought off Pierce to catch a quick in from Manning. *Big stop by rookie DT Nate Robinson, an Irvington native, on a run up the middle by RB Reuben Droughns. The play drew calls of "Atta boy, Nate" from his defensive teammates. *Smith comes out of a break as quickly as any receiver I've ever seen. He ran a beautiful comeback in front of Webster and then a perfect in past CB Kevin Dockery. Later, he added a nice leaping catch on a quick slant. He was so smooth on the leap. Very nice to watch. *WR Domenik Hixon struggled this morning. He didn't field the ball cleanly on a few punts and then had bad back-to-back plays in 7-on-7s. The first was a drop in front of McQuarters and the second was a pass he caught on a slant, only to have it knocked away by rookie S Kenny Phillips. I'm ruling it incomplete. Coach Tom Coughlin later praised Phillips for that play. *Rookie WR Mario Manningham had a potential catch slapped away by Webster. Hmmm, I think I'm ruling that one a fumble. Manningham then almost made a great catch on a bomb down the left sideline, but had it go off his fingertips. *Great play by CB Aaron Ross to jump in front of WR Michael Jennings on a hitch and knock the ball away. This came only a few plays after Toomer caught a ball on an identical play and Ross was just a hair too late. He was frustrated with himself after that one, but received congrats from his teammates after his PD in front Jennings.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Enough contract talk. It’s time for some football. Here are a few belated highlights from this morning’s practice: • The first pass of the first team drills was a perfect, 40-yard spiral from Eli Manning to Amani Toomer, who made an over-the-should catch in double coverage along the sidelines. Toomer actually had several great catches, picking right up where he left off after a brilliant minicamp in June. For what it’s worth, center Shaun O’Hara said we shouldn’t get excited about the first pass of the season, but he did note that there was “obviously great blocking” on the play. • WR Sinorice Moss giveth again, and he taketh away again. Or vice versa. On his first touch he ran an end-around and fumbled the ball (it appeared rookie LB Bryan Kehl might have stripped the ball, though it was hard to tell who got it). A few minutes later, though, he showed an incredible burst of speed along the sideline, pulled up on an underthrown ball, and made the catch despite tight coverage by CB Geoffrey Pope. He followed that up by letting another pass go through his hands. • Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw all rotated in with the first team in the morning, giving absolutely no clue as to what the running back picture will look like. Also, both Dominek Hixon and Michael Jennings saw time at receiver with the first team. • Adam Koets, not newly signed Shane Olivea, was the second-team right tackle, though that’s likely to change as Olivea gets caught up to speed on the offense. • TE Kevin Boss got a huge ovation when he made his first catch. It was a pretty good catch, too, as the ball was thrown slightly behind him and he had to reach back. The kid has good hands, there’s no doubt about that. • WR Mario Manningham had an interesting play as he ran a deep sideline pattern trying to catch a pass from QB Anthony Wright. CB Corey Webster was with him step-for-step … right up until Manningham shoved him to the ground. Manningham, however, couldn’t hang onto the ball. • LB Zak DeOssie (back) also sat out the morning practice, though he is expected to practice this afternoon. *** Meanwhile, off the field … WR Plaxico Burress has eaten lunch, but he declined to talk to the media afterwards. One person who did talk to him said he’s not planning on practicing this afternoon. And while his agent said his decision to sit out is not related to his contract situation, not everyone in the organization is convinced. The afternoon practice begins at 3:20 p.m., so stay tuned for more on this.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Afternoon Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>The Giants have started their afternoon practice -- again without receiver Plaxico Burress. He's on the side of the field, catching passes from a Jugs machine, which presumably throws a nice, tight spiral. Burress also missed the morning session at the University of Albany, and agent Drew Rosenhaus maintains that had nothing to do with Burress' dissatisfaction over his current contract.</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>And now, as promised, your afternoon practice report: *How tough is LB Mathias Kiwanuka (leg)? So tough he practiced this afternoon, even though he was supposed to be a once-per-day practice guy. *As mentioned before, WR Plaxico Burress (ankle) was sidelined. *CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) and LB Zak DeOssie (back) returned after missing the morning session. *Rookie DT Nate Robinson left practice with a hamstring injury. We'll update his status tomorrow. *TE Kevin Boss had a pretty good 1-on-1 session. He froze S Michael Johnson with a stutter move on a quick in and later made a diving catch in front of S Terence Stringer. But S Kenny Phillips later made a nice play to knock away a ball Boss was bobbling. *Elsewhere in 1-on-1s, QB Anthony Wright lofted a pass over CB Kevin Dockery for a completion to WR Michael Jennings. Dockery thought he could undercut the route and get a hand on the ball, but he was wrong. Dockery grabbed Jennings a few plays later and made it a bit too obvious. Even some fans were calling for pass interference after that one. *Give Boss another diving catch on a fade from QB Eli Manning. Boss got behind LB Antonio Pierce on the play. *Manning then had one of his few misfires on a quick slant to WR Domenik Hixon. *Nice play by rookie LB Jonathan Goff, who knocked away a ball on a fade to TE Darcy Johnson. *T Adam Koets, you are guilty of a false start. *WR Sinorice Moss shook off CB Darren Barnett on a go route and had him beat big-time, but QB Andre' Woodson threw a total duck that came up way short. Woodson was rusty on Day 1, but he's got the goods. You could see it on an excellent fade to WR Brandon London. *Nice PD for S James Butler, who came across the field to knock away a pass from Manning to Hixon. Butler later had another PD. *CB R.W. McQuarters, who looks as youthful as any guy out there, had a toe-tapping INT near the left sideline on a play when Manning and his receiver weren't on the same page. Remember the INT against the Bucs in the playoffs? It looked exactly like that. *The play of the day: a leaning TD in the back of the end zone for WR Amani Toomer, who keeps his feet in better than anybody in the business.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>A few highlights from the afternoon: • A pleasant surprise in the afternoon for the Giants when LB Mathias Kiwanuka (ankle) practiced for the second time. He had been designated a once-a-day guy. • This Kevin Boss guy might just be OK. He made another great catch in the afternoon on a crossing route. He had a full extension of his arms and made a falling catch, drawing what for him has become his usual ovation from the crowd. • TE Darcy Johnson gave the Giants a teeny-weeny scare when he went up for a pass near the sideline and was hit by Sammy Knight. Johnson was very slow to get up and limped for a few yards before he finally jogged back to the huddle. • Not so lucky was DT Nate Robinson, a New Jersey native who once played at Rutgers. He limped off the field with a hamstring injury. • Andre Woodson has one of the biggest windups and slowest releases of a quarterback that I’ve seen in=2 0a while. He had one play where he was trying to find Sinorice Moss down the sidelines, but by the time he wound up and threw a wobbly rainbow of a pass, Moss had to just about stop. The ball was underthrown anyway, but CB Nick Barnett, who was in coverage, never turned around for what would’ve been an easy interception. Moss nearly made what would’ve been a remarkable catch by reaching around Barnett’s body, but he couldn’t hang on. • QB Eli Manning still looks sharp, but he threw his first interception when it appeared he and WR Steve Smith got their signals crossed. Smith cut a route short, but Manning threw deep and CB R.W. McQuarters made the pick on the sidelines. • Remember I told you earlier the Giants were practicing in front of a “decent, but smaller-than-expected” crowd. Well, I don’t know what I was expecting. The “official” (but estimated) attendance report said 2,910 people watched practice yesterday – 1,470 in the morning and another 1,400 in the afternoon. That’s a first-day record for camp here, eclipsing the 2,455 watched Day 1 in 2005.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div>
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">SATURDAY JULY 26TH, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Morning Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - And now, your morning practice report for today, the 26th day of July, 2008: *WR Plaxico Burress (ankle) is still sidelined. "The only thing I know is ankle," coach Tom Coughlin said when asked if the contract thing was keeping Plax out. Coughlin said "the doctor" (likely team physician Russ Warren) is coming either today or Sunday morning to take a look at Burress and a few other injured players. *CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) took a few reps in walkthroughs, but didn't do anything else. Same for LB Zak DeOssie (back). Madison practiced both sessions Friday even though he's listed as a one-a-day guy. Both Madison and DeOssie should practice this afternoon. *LB Danny Clark (sports hernia) practiced. He'll likely sit out this afternoon. *Rookie DT Nate Robinson (hamstring), who pulled up lame Friday, was out of action. No word yet on how much time he's expected to miss. *WR David Tyree (knee/PUP), LB Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP), OL Jonathan Palmer (quad/PUP) and QB David Carr (foot/non-football injury list) remain out. Now, before I get to the action, I just want to mention I forgot I changed the format for the practice reports last year to better group the players by where they stand on the team (starters, backups or veterans). So today, we return you to your regularly scheduled format: THE STARTERS *DE Osi Umenyiora blew right around TE Michael Matthews for what would have been a sack of QB Eli Manning. But since play isn't live, Manning was able to stand there and deliver a strike to WR Amani Toomer in traffic. *Manning and Toomer hooked up for a stop-and-go in 7-on-7s down the left sideline. CB Corey Webster was in perfect position until his feet got tangled with Toomer's and he hit the deck. *DT Fred Robbins got his sizable mitts on a pass by Manning. *Nice recognition on an end around to WR Steve Smith by S Michael Johnson, who came up to make the stop. Smith later dropped a ball in the corner of the end zone. Would have been a tough catch. THE BACKUPS *WR Domenik Hixon had an interesting morning. He didn't look back for a fade from Manning on the first pass of team drills, which led offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride to ream Hixon for his missed assignment. Hixon, who had a rough first day, appeared ready to continue his struggles, but he bounced back with a nice comeback in front of Webster and another go on the right side inside of Webster, who had a tough morning practice. Hixon also had a few other grabs and seemed to respond well to Gilbride's yelling. The highlight of his morning came when he went up to catch a fade over CB Aaron Ross in the end zone. The ball was delivered in a perfect spot by Manning. *Credit CB Kevin Dockery with two passes defensed: one on a fade from QB Anthony Wright to WR Michael Jennings and another, nicer, leaping one on a go route from QB Andre' Woodson to WR Mario Manningham. Dockery plays aggressively all the time, which means he's either going to make a play on the ball, get flagged for pass interference or, like yesterday, he'll misjudge his ability to get an angle on the ball. But playing like that is why he's been in the NFL for two years after being overlooked as an undrafted free agent. *WR Sinorice Moss was open on a hitch, but couldn't reach a ball slightly to his outside. It was on the opposite side of the field, so I can't tell you if it's one he should have reached. On the next play, he was open, but Wright threw the ball out of bounds. Then, a few plays later, Moss had a deep ball from Wright glance off his fingertips. One fan had seen enough. "Turn in your playbook, Sinorice!" the fan yelled. *DE Dave Tollefson got his hands up to deflect a pass into the backfield. Jennings went after the ball and caught it five yards behind the line of scrimmage, where he was quickly tagged by a defender. Gilbride immediately instructed Jennings (politely this time, as opposed to his ripping Hixon earlier) to bat the ball down instead of taking a loss on the play. Jennings took the instruction well and caught a quick slant on the next play. *Make of this what you will: OT Shane Olivea showed a mean streak by getting his arm up into Clark's neck. Clark didn't seem to appreciate the gesture, but there were no shoves. Like I said, make of it what you will. Perhaps it's a sign of a motivated Olivea, who wants to remake his reputation after a few rough years in San Diego. THE YOUNG GUYS *Woodson threw behind WR D.J. Hall on a crossing pattern. The ball went through Hall's hands, which caught S Terence Stringer off guard. Stringer missed a chance at an easy interception. *WR Brandon London had a ball go right through his hands on a deep cross. S Kenny Phillips had a shot at an easy interception off the deflection, but he let it slip through his hands as he hit the deck. *CB Terrell Thomas continues to be the overlooked draft pick to me. I've liked what I've seen from this kid from the start of rookie minicamp. This morning, he stuck with Manningham on a deep post from Woodson. Thomas stayed inside Manningham, got his left arm up and batted the ball down. *CB Geoffrey Pope made a great break on one ball ... and then dropped an INT. Bad hands by the DBs this morning.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>For a team that focused so much on managing the passing game during last year’s postseason run, the Giants sure are throwing a lot of deep balls in practice the first two days. As it turns out, that’s by design. “There weren’t enough (big plays last season),” Tom Coughlin said today. “You always strive for more. Obviously the idea is to control the ball, but we feel we need more big plays.” He also said there’s the added benefit of preparing the Giants’ secondary to defend big plays and deep passes, something they struggled with early last season. So that’s why Eli Manning, Anthony Wright and Andre Woodson have spent so much time in practice the last two days throwing deep. Other highlights from this morning’s practice: • As I told you earlier, Plaxico Burress was out again and he will be examined by team doctors either later tonight or early tomorrow morning. Asked if he knew whether Burress’ absence was ankle-related or contract-related, Tom Coughlin said, “The only thing I know is the ankle. That’s all I know.” Coughlin also did not know when Burress would be able to practice again. • Rookie DT Nate Robinson (hamstring) also sat out practice this morning and will be examined by the team doctors tonight or tomorrow. • Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but it was another outstanding practice for Amani Toomer. First he made a nice catch over the middle in traffic from Eli Manning. Then he caught a bomb down the sidelines a few plays later. If he’s dropped one in camp so far, I must have missed it. • Continuing the deep pass storyline, Wright has a cannon for an arm, but he had trouble hooking up with 5-8 Sinorice Moss. First he overthrew him down one sideline, then he threw what seemed to be a perfect pass down the other sideline, about 60 yards in the air, but it was just out of Moss’ reach and bounced off his fingertips. • Dominek Hixon has impressed Coughlin so far, just as he did during the June minicamp. He made a real nice sliding catch on yet another deep pass, despite double coverage. When discussing Hixon, Coughlin also noted his special teams play and said that all the receivers will have to contribute on special teams. I may be reading between the lines a bit, but that may have been a warning to Moss, who hasn’t contributed to special teams much. • A badly overthrown pass by Woodson landed right in the chest of rookie corner Terrance Stringer … and then bounced away. Stringer is one of the rookies that secondary coach Dave Merritt said he’s excited about watching this summer. • DE Dave Tollefson jumped up to deflect an Eli Manning pass and it went straight up in the air and landed in the hands of receiver Michael Jennings. Great play by Jennings? Not so much. He should have knocked it down, because he would’ve ended up getting tackled for a five-yard loss. The play drew him a little lecture from offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride. • CB Terrell Thomas (second round) went step for step with WR Mario Manningham (third round) on a deep pass over the middle and managed to knock it away at the last minute.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Afternoon Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - And now, your afternoon practice report for today, the 26th day of July, 2008: INJURIES *WR Plaxico Burress (ankle) caught passes from QB David Carr (foot/non-football injury list), but that's all they did. *LBs Danny Clark (sports hernia) and Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP), DE Osi Umenyiora (hip), WR David Tyree (knee/PUP), OL Jonathan Palmer (quad) and DT Nate Robinson (hamstring) did not practice. 6:15 p.m. UPDATE Robinson has been waived/injured. No word on who will replace him on the 80-man roster. *CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) and LB Zak DeOssie (back) did practice. *With Umenyiora sidelined, DE Dave Tollefson worked with the first team. THE STARTERS *FB Madison Hedgecock made a great fingertip catch past LB Antonio Pierce. *Pierce had been a step behind on a few passes the past two days. But after an off-season in which he admitted he be taking a lot of time away from football, Pierce showed signs of quickly getting back in the groove this afternoon. He went up to intercept a pass from QB Eli Manning early in team drills. *One play after Pierce's interception, Manning went deep down the left sideline to WR Domenik Hixon. CB Corey Webster tracked the ball, leaped, tipped it in the air and picked it off on the way down. A nice way for him to rebound from a rough morning. *Manning and WR Steve Smith missed by inches on a deep ball down the left sideline. *CB Aaron Ross was a step behind WR Mario Manningham on one go route, but so was the ball from QB Anthony Wright. Ross reached up and easily slapped it away. *Nice quick seam from Manning to TE Kevin Boss over the head of 6-5 LB Mathias Kiwanuka. THE BACKUPS*RB Derrick Ward torched Kiwanuka in 1-on-1s, but dropped the ball. RB Ahmad Bradshaw then streaked past rookie LB Bryan Kehl and finished the play by making the catch. Kiwanuka later mauled Boss at the line to stop his progress. *WR Michael Jennings made the play of the day early in the afternoon. It came on a crossing route and a bad ball from QB Anthony Wright that was a few feet behind Jennings. CB R.W. McQuarters should have picked the ball off but juggled it for a few yards. Jennings reached back, snatched it and kept running. *TE Darcy Johnson did a nice job of finding the hole in the defense for a completion from Manning in 7-on-7s. *WR Sinorice Moss runs the comeback well. He broke one off this afternoon and had about 7 yards of separation from the nearest defender. Remember, he did that during the Detroit game last year, but got into trouble when he ran backward even though he had a huge cushion. Moss later had a nice leaping catch in the end zone, but came down out of bounds. THE YOUNG GUYS*Nice positioning by S Kenny Phillips to knock away a pass intended for Johnson in 1-on-1s. *We have a WR D.J. Hall sighting. The undrafted rookie went up to catch a fade over CB Geoffrey Pope. *Pope took a shove from Hall on that play and another on the next play from WR Mario Manningham. Pope showed no sign of fighting back and should have gotten a shove of his own in there. Finally, a few plays later Pope nudged Hall (legally) and stepped in front to knock the ball away. *There's a PD for rookie S Nehemiah Warrick on a short hook and an INT on a ball from QB Andre' Woodson intended for ... I have no idea. *Kehl made a stop at the line on a third-and-5 handoff to RB Danny Ware. *Rookie DE Wallace Gilberry shot past OL Adam Koets for a sack. *Woodson had another fumbled exchange after one yesterday. This one was with RB Kay-Jay Harris on a shotgun draw. A few plays later, he threw a ball right at S Sammy Knight, who picked it off.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>A few highlights from the afternoon … • It certainly wasn’t the best of the four practices for QB Eli Manning, who was picked off twice and had several other passes land in no-man’s land. His first pick was by LB Antonio Pierce, who had a quiet first three sessions. The second was a highlight-reel grab by Corey Webster who batted it up in the air in front of Dominek Hixon and eventually came down with the ball. • The Giants are very, very crowded at receiver, but don’t count out Michael Jennings. I can’t figure out how, exactly, he would make the roster, but he’s had a knack for hanging around longer than expected. He’s also had a nice start to camp. His highlight in the afternoon was on a terrible pass from Anthony Wright that should’ve been picked off by CB R.W. McQuarters. But he bobbled it, allowing Jennings to reach behind him and bat it up. After several more bobbles, Jennings brought it down. • Lawrence Tynes finally got to do some live field goal kicking and went 8 for 8 between what looked to be 17 and 37 yards (from the media’s vantage point, it was hard to tell). He’s the only kicker in camp, so given today’s performance and the fact that he kicked the Giants into the Super Bowl in January, I think he might have won the job. • For a guy who is supposed to have big home-run potential and be a dangerous deep threat, so far rookie Mario Manningham hasn’t flashed an ability to separate from the defense. Rookie CB Terrell Thomas went step for step with him to bat away a deep ball in the morning, and in the afternoon Aaron Ross did the same thing. • No, WR Plaxico Burress (ankle/wallet) did not practice. But at least he didn’t meet the same harsh fate of DT Nate Robinson, a rookie from Irvington, N.J. He pulled his hamstring yesterday afternoon and was waived today. No word yet on who’ll replace him on the 80-man roster. • In a TV interview this evening with NBC’s Bruce Beck, Tom Coughlin said that Plaxico Burress has been examined by the team doctors and his ankle is legitimately bad enough to keep him out of practice. While there’s no timetable on his return, Coughlin expressed a hope that Burress might be able to return to practice by the middle of this week. • Play of the day: Manning tossed a ball deep to … no one, really. It went well beyond any receiver and even past the safeties. It bounced to Giants PR man Avis Roper, who then threw a perfect spiral back to equipment manager Joe Skiba that trav elled 45 yards in the air. *** No practice for the Giants tomorrow, who’ll spend the day in meetings and doing conditioning work. They’ll return to the practice fields on Monday morning for another day of two-a-days. Only this time, the second practice will shift into the evening. *** And finally, Happy Birthday (or, if you prefer, Blogiversary) to The Blue Screen, which turns 2 today. Thanks to all of you who have been here from the beginning, and those of you who have jumped on the bandwagon since. It has become, by far, the most successful and best blog on the Daily News website (I’m sure my editors will back me up on that). It all began right here with a story about the annual Media vs. Coaches softball game and Dan Reeves, who has since become my Sirius NFL Radio co-host. Please ignore the strange coding issues. They weren’t there two years ago, I swear.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div>
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">MONDAY JULY 28TH, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Morning Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Before I get to the practice report, just wanted to update WR Mario Manningham's situation. The rookie said the quad injury that knocked him out of this morning's practice isn't serious and isn't related to the ailment that hampered him during rookie minicamp. Manningham is hopeful he'll be back tomorrow. And now, your morning practice report for today, the 28th day of July, 2008: INJURIES *WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle) and David Tyree (knee/PUP), QB David Carr (foot/non-football injury list), DE Osi Umenyiora (hip), LBs Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and Zak DeOssie (back), CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) and OL Jonathan Palmer (quad/PUP) did not practice. *LB Danny Clark (sports hernia) did practice. THE STARTERS *TE Kevin Boss ran a flag pattern on the first play of team drills. S James Butler had good coverage underneath and got two hands on the ball, but deflected it backward, where Boss was waiting with open arms to grab it. Boss had a leaping catch on a 15-yard square in a few plays later. *LB Mathias Kiwanuka made a great play to make up ground on TE Eric Butler on a seam pattern. Kiwanuka unleashed his long stride and closed the gap in time to knock away a pass from QB Anthony Wright. The next play was a quick out from Wright to Butler and Kiwanuka was all over it, using his long right arm to reach over Butler and slap the ball away. Long legs, long arms and a long frame are what Kiwanuka use to his advantage. "You saw him 35 yards down the field knocking the ball down, coach Tom Coughlin said. "Of course, he's got those 27-foot arms." *Oh, and awesome awareness, too. Kiwanuka shot into the backfield on a toss to RB Derrick Ward. *CB Corey Webster led off 11 on 11 drills with an easy interception down the left sideline of an underthrown pass by Wright intended for WR Amani Toomer. THE BACKUPS *WR Sinorice Moss ran a nice comeback, but had a pass from QB Andre' Woodson (that was only slightly high wide) glance off his hands. He reached up a few minutes later to snare a ball above his head. *WR Steve Smith broke CB Kevin Dockery's ankles (figuratively) on a gorgeous comeback. Like I've said, Smith's routes are a thing of beauty. *WR Domenik Hixon carried the momentum of a solid Saturday into today with a well-run in cut from Manning and a comeback near the sideline a few plays later. *I was expecting more from TE Darcy Johnson so far, especially after his impressive minicamp. It's not that he's screwed up, dropped balls or done anything to get ripped by the coaches; just that he looks a little hesitant to me. It's probably because of the knee injury he suffered last year. After all, he got tangled with one player on Friday and limped slightly after the play. He just had this look of hesitation on his face as he walked away. He also looked unsure on one play when he came close to S Michael Johnson, the player with whom he collided last year when he suffered his injury. Maybe Darcy Johnson's just taking a few days to get used to increased contact once again. THE YOUNG GUYS *S Kenny Phillips flattened RB Reuben Droughns on a run up the middle. Only one problem: there's supposed to be limited contact in practice. "Be smart out there, blue," one offensive player yelled to the blue-shirted defensive players after Phillips' hit. I think it was C Shaun O'Hara who did the yelling. Phillips didn't lose any aggressiveness after that, though, because he gave WR Brandon London a little shot as London hauled in a deep ball from Wright down the left sideline. In a real game, Phillips would have lit London up like a Christmas tree. Today, he took a little off as London held onto the ball. Secondary coach Peter Giunta didn't say anything to Phillips but got on Dockery for letting London get a free release off the line. *RB Robert Douglas went in motion on one play and wasn't supposed to. Wright was forced to call a timeout. *DE Robert Henderson had what would have been a sack on a speed rush around the end. *Rookie LB Jonathan Goff would have sacked Wright on a play-action pass. The play resulted in a PD for CB Geoffrey Pope. *DT Alex Morrow would have had a sack on a rush up the middle. *Woodson threw a nice deep ball to WR Michael Jennings, who had the catch but lost it as he fell to the ground. Woodson followed that up by completing a pass up the seam to Boss. *WR D.J. Hall ended 11 on 11 drills by dropping a 5 yard hook along the sideline.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>While Plaxico Burress was standing on the sidelines, being careful not to put any weight on his right ankle, here’s what he missed at this morning’s practice: • I think that Kevin Boss guy is going to be pretty good. If nothing else, he seems to give me one highlight to write about every day. Today’s version came when Eli Manning tried to hit him over the top of S James Butler, who leaped and managed to get one hand on the ball. But Boss, in stride, simply reached back and batted the ball away from Butler and to himself, before continuing on his way down the field. • Did I see an end-around to Amani Toomer? I’m pretty sure I did. And I’m guessing that’s the last one I’ll see. I’d imagine that will be a play for Steve Smith or Sinorice Moss (if he sticks) during the regular season, not a 33-year-old, 13-year vet. • Speaking of Toomer, he slipped on the sidelines while trying to make a hook back for a Manning pass. That allowed Corey Webster to make a nice play on the sidelines to pick off the pass. • Boss made another catch over the middle in traffic. Yawn. Show me something new, kid. • I’ve mentioned the slow release of rookie QB Andre Woodson before, but here’s the upside. The kid has a cannon for an arm. I know, so did Jared Lorenzen. But there appears to be a difference. Woodson’s cannon seems to hit its targets more often than Lorenzen’s did. Lorenzen overthrew everyone, all the time. Woodson may take a while to let go of the ball, but when he does it’s a dart in the right direction. • The Giants are still working on their deep passing game, but it appears they were emphasizing the run a little more this morning. You can’t tell much about the run game, though, when there’s no hitting going on. • Did I say no hitting? Rookie S Kenny Phillips must have missed the memo. He leveled RB Reuben Droughns on one run up the middle. He also gave WR Brandon London a little-too-hard shove on a sideline route, though London managed to hold on to the ball. • LB Mathias Kiwanuka, who got some work in at DE today while the defense was working on the nickel, earned some praise for his work covering tight ends – including one play where he followed TE Eric Butler all the way down the field to break up a pass. “It was his fifth straight good practice,” Coughlin said. “You saw him 35 yards down field knocking a ball down. That’s pretty good.”</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Evening Practice (Contact)</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - A little rain can't stop the defending champs. They worked through a short storm this evening and here's the report for the night practice: INJURIES *As mentioned earlier, QB David Carr (foot) was back in action. *WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), Mario Manningham (quad) and David Tyree (knee/PUP), LBs Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and Danny Clark (sports hernia) and OL Jonathan Palmer (quad/PUP) did not practice. THE STARTERS *S Michael Johnson had a pass defensed to start 1-on-1s when he knocked away a ball for TE Kevin Boss, but that's only because he grabbed the back of Boss' jersey as he came out of his break. I saw that, MJ. Boss bounced back with a diving catch in front of Johnson a few plays later. *DE Justin Tuck has been on his feet when the defense goes to dime. Looks like he might be the roving DE this year in those situations, which is interesting because you would think it would be LB Mathias Kiwanuka, who has had his hand on the ground for those situations. *CB Aaron Ross couldn't quite get around WR Domenik Hixon to knock away a short completion, but CB Corey Webster did a few plays later for a nice PD. *Great play by the underappreciated S James Butler, who curled around WR Sinorice Moss on a deep out to slap away a ball. THE BACKUPS *Hixon beat CB Aaron Ross for a ball down the left sideline from QB Eli Manning. During the 2-minute drill (actually 1:24 drill), Hixon got behind Butler for a big gain to set up a successful drive for the offense that would have resulted in a field goal. Manning hit WR Amani Toomer to cap a drive that was much quicker and smoother than the one in SB XLII. *Carr had his first three passes dropped before completing two straight. His best throw of the night was a strike to Hixon on a 15-yard slant. *TE Darcy Johnson juked S Kenny Phillips on a stop-and-go from Manning for a big gain. *LB Chase Blackburn got WAY up to bat down a screen pass. Frankly, I didn't think he could get that high. Blackburn later beat LT Guy Whimper on a blitz for a sack of Carr. *CB R.W. McQuarters, the sly veteran that he is, grabbed WR Michael Jennings' hand on a deep ball. Once McQuarters jumped ahead, Jennings yanked back. The ball fell incomplete, but it was still a touching moment watching those two teammates running down the field hand-in-hand. *CB Sam Madison showed good closing speed (Yeah, I didn't think he had any left, either.) to break up a deep ball from Manning to Jennings. *WR Steve Smith made a beauty of a sliding catch in front of Phillips. Later, though, Smith had his first bad drop of camp (at least that I've seen). THE YOUNG GUYS *If you're an NFL receiver and you're reading this, well, you really should be doing something cooler. But if you are reading this, do yourself a favor and keep an eye on Phillips if and when you play against him in the future. He seems to always be in a position to put his helmet through somebody's torso. Tonight, it was Moss who nearly got Jack Tatumed. But after laying a few hits this morning and being reprimanded, Phillips pulled up and put his hands up on this one. *Rookie CB Terrell Thomas showed tremendous reaction time to undercut a comeback for WR Brandon London in 1-on-1s. I mean, it was a sick play by Thomas, who nearly picked the ball off as he fell on his back. I'm telling you, don't forget about this guy. *Nice job by undrafted rookie DT Ogemdi Nwagbuo to make a stop on RB Kay-Jay Harris in 9-on-7s. But for an encore, he was flattened by C Digger Bujnoch and G Na'Shan Goddard on the next play. During team drills, Bujnoch had a bad snap with Carr that resulted in a fumble. *LBs Bryan Kehl and Jonathan Goff were all over a screen pass for RB Ahmad Bradshaw, who wound up face down when the play was snuffed out. The screens tonight were not run very smoothly by the offense. And then there was the swing pass from QB Andre' Woodson to RB Danny Ware on one play that was blown up by DT Barry Cofield, who hustled from his position all the way around RT Shane Olivea to get to Ware. *Who lit a fire under London (the player, not the city)? He's finally showing that athleticism I thought we'd see in minicamp. He made a leaping catch down the field and later went low to catch a bullet from Wright in front of CB Darren Barnett. He's got a huge battle to make this team, but the practice squad is a possibility for the second straight year. *TE Eric Butler seems to be getting a bit more comfortable. He made a few catches in traffic. With the situation at that position, he certainly has a chance to jump up and grab a job. I'll keep an eye on him. *And finally, what a play by the guy in the crowd wearing the throwback L.T. jersey who made the diving catch of K Lawrence Tynes' field goal. Not sure he belongs in the "young guys" section, but that's where he's going because he mauled a few kids on his way to making the catch.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>The champs put on the pads tonight and did a little hitting for the first time this summer. Not a ton of hitting, but enough to knock a few bodies to the ground. The also worked straight through a brief rainstorm that soaked my notebook. Here are a few of the salvageable highlights that I can still read: LB Chase Blackburn, who has been seeing a lot of reps on the weakside with Gerris Wilkinson (knee) out and Danny Clark (hernia) limited, made a nice blitz, then got way up in the air, and deflected away an Eli Manning pass. Blackburn is one of those guys that always seems to do something good when he’s on the field, though he probably doesn’t get on it as much as he should. Interesting coaching maneuver tonight. For a brief time, LBs coach Bill Sheridan was coaching the running backs and Secondary coach Peter Giunta was coaching the receivers. Why? It appeared as if the defensive coaches were teaching the offensive players tackling techniques - you know, in case there’s a turnover and they’re suddenly forced to turn into defensive players. Makes a lot of sense.< /div> Sam Madison, still recovering from hernia surgery, was fast enough to stay step for step with the speedy Michael Jennings and break up the slightly underthrown pass in a 7-on-7 drill. In the same drill, Sinorice Moss cut inside and lunged at a pass from Manning, but it was just out of his reach. It didn’t matter, though. Rookie S Kenny Phillips had got himself in a position where he would’ve taken Moss’ head off. That’s a theme with Phillips so far this summer. He either appears to be in pos ition to deliver a crushing hit, or he just hits someone - non-contact drill or not. You’ve got to love that aggressiveness. Speaking of rookie defensive backs, he might be one of the Giants’ most overlooked rookies in several years but keep your eyes on CB Terrell Thomas. This was far from where I was standing, but he appeared to make a great play cutting off Brandon London and nearly made a great interception while lying on the ground. My view was blocked, but I was sure at first that he caught it. Play of the day was a diving catch by WR Brandon London on yet another deep pass, this one thrown by strong-armed rookie Andre Woodson. Runner up came in the two-minute drill when Dominek Hixon out-fought S James Butler for a 50-yard bomb from Manning. QB David Carr returned to practice and got off to a slow start before throwing a few nice completions. They were mostly short passes. Maybe this is the power of suggestion, since QB coach Chris Palmer indicated it was an issue, but a few times I did thi nk he bolted from the pocket a little too soon on a play. Rookie WR Mario Manningham, who strained his quad in the morning, sat out the afternoon practice.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div>
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">TUESDAY JULY 29TH, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Your practice report for today, the 29th day of July, 2008: INJURIES *As mentioned in the previous entry, WR Amani Toomer (sore left leg) and WR Steve Smith (undisclosed soreness) did not practice. *Rookie WR Mario Manningham was back in action, as promised, after pulling up lame with a quad injury yesterday. *Rookie S Terrance Stringer (hamstring) was sidelined. *OL Adam Koets (dizzyness) was not on the field. *WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), David Tyree (knee /PUP), LB Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and OL Jonathan Palmer (quad/PUP) continue to miss practice. *With Burress, Toomer and Smith out of action, your boy Sinorice Moss was working with the first unit. THE STARTERS *Two PDs for S James Butler in red-zone 1-on-1s, though safeties coach Dave Merritt was upset he didn't pick off the first one that was right in his hands. *DT Fred Robbins came flying through to make a stop on a stretch run to the right by RB Brandon Jacobs. *TE Kevin Boss, he of the brand-spanking-new Web site, was open on a crossing route, but the ball was delivered high by QB Eli Manning. Boss started to leap for it then just pulled up. Maybe he thought it was intended for somebody behind him. There was no one there, though. Boss later had a catch on a 20-yard seam pass from Manning behind S Michael Johnson. *LB Mathias Kiwanuka had another excellent practice. He popped TE Michael Matthews on one play and came flying through on on a couple of blitzes. *FB Madison Hedgecock got a surprise carry and received a sarcastic cheer from his teammates. The cheers only grew louder when Hedgecock tripped over the 50-yard line and fell on his face. As he got up to spike the ball, his teammates, mocking coach Tom Coughlin's daily mandate, yelled, "Stay on your feet, Hedgecock!" *Coughlin yelled at a few players after successive pileups on a few running plays. A lot of guys had trouble staying on their feet today, including QB David Carr, who stumbled after a play fake, got up and, with two blitzers in his face, flung a ball to FB Robert Douglas. WR Domenik Hixon delivered a crackback block on Johnson, who fell when he collided with Matthews. Johnson wasn't happy with the downfield sandwich block, even though Matthews apologized right away. *DE Osi Umenyiora was offside on a goal-line play, but the penalty would have been declined because Jacobs blasted through Butler for a TD. After the play, one of Umenyiora's teammates (sounded like LB Antonio Pierce), yelled, "Osi, stop jumping." *RB Ahmad Bradshaw, showing the power many didn't realize he had until late last year, carried rookie CB Terrell Thomas into the end zone. Hey, I was praising Thomas yesterday, but I never said a word about his tackling. 6:29 p.m. UPDATE Whoopsie, got that one wrong. It was apparently RB Derrick Ward, not Bradshaw, who plowed into the end zone. From my vantage point, I saw his jersey get pulled up and only caught the 4, not the first number. Sorry about that one. I'll get better position tomorrow. And hopefully so will Thomas. THE BACKUPS *Moss showed some strength to push off CB Aaron Ross for a TD from Manning on the first play of red-zone 1-on-1s. Moss then dropped a sure TD after neating Ross a few plays later. He rebounded with a 15-yard in cut in front of Ross. *Hixon made a diving catch in front of CB Corey Webster two plays after Moss' TD. Hixon juked CB Darren Barnett a few plays later, but Carr threw way behind him and Barnett picked the pass off. Webster, perhaps still stewing from the TD, threw a block on Hixon as Barnett returned the INT. *I see ya, LB Zak DeOssie, coming up to take on a pulling G Kevin Boothe and making a stop. DeOssie later made a stop on Bradshaw in the 2-minute drill. *TE Darcy Johnson ran a deep in and probably should have come away with a tough catch that got into his chest despite LB Tank Daniels' being all over Johnson's back. Johnson bounced back to make a great catch on a cross with rookie S Kenny Phillips delivering a hit. Johnson clearly wasn't affected by Phillips' reputation. *DE Dave Tollefson showed good hustle on one play to chase Manning all the way across the field on a rollout. Manning couldn't find anybody, so he had to tuck it and take a sack. In a game, you would hope he would throw the ball away. *S Sammy Knight used his smarts to read Carr's eyes and undercut a crossing route by Manningham for an INT. Knight was playing half coverage on the left side and Manningham was crossing from his right. The play drew big-time praise from safeties coach Dave Merritt. THE YOUNG GUYS *Phillips had an aggressive PD on a pass from Wright to Matthews. *LB Jonathan Goff saw the hole and show through it to make a stop in 9-on-7s. He followed that up by tracking a counter play nicely and making another stop. But C Digger Bujnoch and Douglas blew Goff away when he went for the hat trick. That's two big blocks by Bujnoch I've noticed in as many days. Maybe it's time to start paying more attention to him. *Manningham ran a deep fade down the right sideline and located the ball to make the catch while CB Geoffrey Pope got spun around. Pope was quickly corrected by DB coach Peter Giunta. *A couple more nice grabs today by TE Eric Butler, who made a good move on one defender during 1-on-1s.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Receiver Amani Toomer was sidelined from today’s practice with what Tom Coughlin described as swelling in his leg. Coughlin didn’t seem to think it was anything serious, but it’s certainly something to be watched. And Toomer wasn’t alone on the growing injury report either. WR Steve Smith left practice very early because, Coughlin said, he was “sore.” Offensive tackle Adam Koets apparently woke up dizzy, Coughlin said, so they held him out and will be monitoring him. And rookie safety Terrance Stringer left practice with a hamstring injury. Meanwhile, Plaxico Burress (ankle) is still out, until the doctors officially clear him. Coughlin did not have any idea when that might be. On the bright side, all the one-a-day practice players - LB Zak DeOssie (back), CB Sam Madison (hernia), DE Osi Umenyiora (hip) and LB Danny Clark (hernia) - were all able to practice. Here are a few highlights from the only practice today: • WR Michael Jennings made a nice, reaching catch over the middle on a pass from QB Anthony Wright that led him just a little bit too far. Had that not been a non-contact drill, though, it would’ve been dangerous because S Kenny Phillips had him lined up for what would’ve been a big hit. • Nice pass from Wright, deep over the middle to TE Darcy Johnson that was broken up by LB Tank Daniels, who went step for step with the tight end and broke it up. … Later on in practice, Wright and Johnson hooked up on a very similar route. This time Johnson hung on, but lurking right there once again was Phillips. I’m telling you, he’s going to hurt someone. • TE Kevin Boss had no such trouble a few plays later when he caught a Manning pass in the same area. Boss, though, had at least 10 yards of separation from the back of the defense. • Not a great day for QB David Carr, who is struggling to get back into the swing of things after missing the first few days of camp. First, he was flushed out of the pocket and threw a very wobbly pass over the middle that went way over fifth-string TE Eric Butler’s head. One play later, he saw WR Mario Manningham cutting over the middle to the right … but he didn’t see S Sammy Knight hanging out in the middle of the field. The pass was underthrown, leading to a very easy INT for Knight. • The Giants were back in full pads despite the sweltering heat and did a lot of work on the running game. They also did some live goal-line drills. Most of the goal-line runs appeared to be straight up the middle, which from a low sideline view is impossible to evaluate. From the action I could see on the outside, I can tell you two things about the blocking: T Guy Whimper was doing a great job with the second team, holding his own against DE Dave Tollefson and assorted others. And I watched LG Na’Shan Goddard pull to the outside and lay a vicious block on … someone. Sorry, in the mass of bodies I couldn’t see who he hit.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div>
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">WEDNESDAY JULY 30TH, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Morning Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Your morning practice report: INJURIES *WR Amani Toomer (leg) returned to practice after sitting out yesterday. *S Craig Dahl (knee), wearing No. 43 because CB Terrell Thomas has his old No. 30., is indeed on a limited schedule right now. He didn't practice this morning, but should be on the field tonight. Asked how Dahl was able to recover so quickly from a torn ACL, coach Tom Coughlin said, "The thing he did, which was probably a good lesson for everybody, was they held him for probably a month before they did the surgery. They strengthened the leg - the muscles around the knee, the quads - they got the swelling completely down. The surgery wasn't as traumatic as some, so his post-op ability to go right back to work was pretty efficient. I think that's one of the thing's that's helped him a lot." *OL Jonathan Palmer (quad) was taken off the PUP list and is back on the field. *DT Jay Alford did not practice. Honestly, I meant to ask Coughlin why not, but I forgot. I'll get you an answer as soon as I can. *WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), David Tyree (knee/PUP) and Steve Smith (groin soreness), DE Osi Umenyiora (hip), LBs Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and Zak DeOssie (back), CB Sam Madison (sports hernia) and OL Adam Koets (dizziness) did not practice. Koets might go tonight. THE STARTERS *QB Eli Manning had another great practice. If I haven't mentioned this enough over the past few days, he's been putting the ball in great spots for his receivers and backs. *Yawn. Another stop in the backfield for LB Mathias Kiwanuka on a run by RB Derrick Ward. *CB Aaron Ross stayed with WR Domenik Hixon on a 7-on-7 play that wouldn't have lasted nearly as long as it did with a live rush. Ross reached over Hixon to bat away Manning's pass. A few minutes later, Ross couldn't get his hand in there to stop a completion for WR Sinorice Moss. *TE Kevin Boss found a soft spot in front of CB Kevin Dockery for a nice gain near the sideline in 7-on-7s. Later, though, he did something that prompted offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride to ask, "Why would you do that?" Not sure exactly what Boss did wrong. *Toomer's leg looked fine on a deep cross from Manning. Toomer had plenty of room, with S Sammy Knight about 10 yards away. And I have no idea how he was able to get to a ball on a fade from Manning in the red-zone with CB R.W. McQuarters all over him. Toomer ran in an arc around McQuarters and made a diving catch, according to the coaches nearby. McQuarters was waving his arms to signify an incomplete pass, but the coaches and Toomer (who was talking about a replay challenge when he got back to the sideline) were having none of it. *LB Danny Clark was smooth in coverage, particularly on one play when he had a PD on a sideline pass for RB Brandon Jacobs. For good measure, he then batted down a ball thrown by Manning at the line. THE BACKUPS *Dockery stayed with Moss on a a flea flicker bomb from QB Anthony Wright. Dockery made a leaping INT attempt and had it until the ball popped out when he landed on the ground. Of course, the play would have ended with a sack by DE Renaldo Wynn. *Awesome, awesome, awesome catch by Hixon on a quick in from Manning. Hixon had Dockery grabbing his left arm and spinning him on his way to the ground, so he caught it with his right hand as he fell. Hixon added a catch on a flea flicker later when he got good separation from S Michael Johnson. *Hixon, who's working with the first team but because of the injuries to the top receivers, had a TD in red-zone drills. On an all-out blitz from the defense, he was left uncovered and Manning just lofted one in the end zone. *Ward ran a wheel route past Clark for a completion down the right sideline from Manning. *Moss later pulled away from Dockery late on a well-protected pass play for a completion from Wright. *QB David Carr laid a nice ball out to the right on a deep go for WR Craphonso Thorpe. CB Darren Barnett, in coverage on the play, timed his leap horribly. Thorpe later beat Barnett for a TD in red-zone 7-on-7s. *TE Darcy Johnson still looks hesitant to me for some reason. He didn't go up to get a ball on a deep out from Carr, leading coach Tom Coughlin to yell, "You have to catch that one, Darcy!" On the next play, WR Brandon London showed how it's done by running almost an identical route and making the catch from Carr while keeping both feet in bounds. Toward the end of practice, Johnson had another ball from Carr go off his hands after Carr kept the play alive with a scramble. *LB Chase Blackburn came through for a stop on a run by Ward in goal-line drills, which weren't live like yesterday so Blackburn just tapped Ward. *Coughlin wasn't happy with the way the second-team offense was breaking the huddle. "This isn't a convention!" Coughlin yelled. THE YOUNG GUYS *Wow, DE Wallace Gilberry. Nice play to stay home on an end around by Moss and not bite on any of his jukes. Gilberry got a "Nice job, Wallace," out of Coughlin after that one. On the next play, he plowed inside RT Shane Olivea and might have made a shoestring tackle on a run to the opposite dside. On one of the last plays of practice, Gilberry beat LT Guy Whimper for a sack. Whimper gripped the back of Gilberry's jersey as he went by. I think that's a penalty. Gilberry's teammates yelled, "Way to go, nine-five!" *S Kenny Phillips did a nice job of jumping a crossing route by WR Mario Manningham. He couldn't quite hold on for the INT, but knocked it away for a PD. *TE Eric Butler wants a spot on this team. He made a nice fingertip catch on a crossing route with Blackburn trailing him. *QB Andre' Woodson rushed a TE screen for Boss and threw it way behind him. *Woodson showed great touch to loft a ball over a few heads for a TD to London in goal-line drills. I wasn't sure if London stayed in bounds at the back of the end zone, but he said he was. "That's a touch, baby!" London yelled.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Amani Toomer was back on the field this morning, apparently over the swelling in his leg that sidelined him yesterday. But Steve Smith remains sidelined with a sore groin. Asked when Smith might return, Coughlin said, “I don’t know about that one. It’s day-to-day, practice-to-practice.” Also missing yesterday was offensive lineman Adam Koets, who wasn’t even out on the field. He was held out yesterday after he woke up feeling dizzy. Coughlin said he hasn’t been cleared to resume workouts yet, but he seemed hopeful he’d have him back this afternoon. Meanwhile, here are a few highlights from this morning’s practice: • FB Madison Hedgecock didn’t fall, and yes that appears to be newsworthy. He took a flare pass from Eli Manning and stayed on his feet - something he didn’t do yesterday when he carried the ball up the middle and tripped over his own two feet. • He might have a tough time making anything but the practice squad, but keep your eye on rookie DE Wallace Gilberry, who burned left tackle Guy Whimper in one drill and would’ve hammered QB Anthony Wright if he had been allowed. Earlier, he snuffed out an end-around by WR Sinorice Moss. Actually, as the shifty Moss ran toward him, he may have put a move on Gilberry. But Moss fell. • Throw the red flag. CB Kevin Dockery made a leaping, falling apparent interception of a Wright pass that was intended for Moss. He made the catch and fell flat on his back, which is when the ball popped up and out. Did he have control? Did the ground cause the fumble? Hard to tell from across the field. We’ll have to wait for the TV replay. • Throw the red flag again. Manning made a rainbow throw to the end zone from 20 yards out that Toomer might have caught. He shed his coverage by Corey Webster, dove and claimed he made the catch on the ground. The coach on the sideline signaled catch, though CB R.W. McQuarters thought otherwise. • I’m telling you, Kenny Phillips is going to hurt someone. I watched QB David Carr throw a nice pass down field in the direction of WR Mario Manningham. The receiver seemed open and I thought he was going to catch it and then - boom! - out of nowhere Phillips came charging in. He nearly made the interception and nearly took Manningham’s head off, all at the same time. He’s got to be in the receivers’ heads by now. I know he’s in my head. Every time I feel something moving behind me I quickly look to find out where the rookie safety is. • Another player to watch: WR Brandon London. He’s likely headed to another year on the practice squad, but he’s big, has shown some decent speed and is catching a lot of passes - including a sliding catch in the end zone on a soft toss from QB Andre Woodson. London got a few first-team reps today, too. • Great play by LB Danny Clark to break up a flare pass intended for RB Brandon Jacobs. He reached around the big running back and knocked it away. A few plays later he shed his block from G Chris Snee, jumped, and swatted down an Eli Manning pass. • Carr continues to look jittery and Coughlin said he flushed himself out of the pocket a little bit early this morning on at least two occasions. However, I did see one play when he didn’t flush out, but sidestepped the rush and then tossed a quick, off-balance throw over the middle to WR D.J. Hall, who made a nice catch.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Evening Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Your evening practice report for a sloppy session I'm sure the offense would like to forget: INJURIES *DE Justin Tuck did not practice with a sore foot. He's expected back tomorrow. *WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), Steve Smith (groin), Mario Manningham (probably quad but not confirmed) and David Tyree (knee/Pup), LBs Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and Danny Clark (sports hernia) and OL Adam Koets (dizziness) did not practice. *DT Jay Alford (undisclosed) and S Craig Dahl (knee) were back in action. THE STARTERS *What a throw by QB Eli Manning to TE Jerome Collins on a corner route for a TD in 1-on-1s. Collins hadn't even started his break and still had S Sammy Knight all over him when Manning lofted the ball to what wound up being the perfect spot. I mean, what a throw. *Manning then went cold in 7-on-7s when he delivered two low incompletions to WRs Domenik Hixon and Michael Jennings. *TE Kevin Boss had a couple steps on a crossing route in the back of the end zone with S James Butler in coverage. But Boss dropped the pass from rookie QB Andre' Woodson. That's the first bad drop I can recall for Boss so far this camp. *CB Corey Webster had a good breakup of a ball from Manning to WR Amani Toomer on the first play of team drills. Webster stayed underneath the post and batted the ball away with his left hand. A few plays later, though, Webster was reprimanded by one of the officials who will be working practice the next few days. The ref said Webster was gripping Hixon's jersey a bit too much. The same ref thought CB Aaron Ross interfered with Hixon a bit later. But the official on the other side called it a clean PD. *C Shaun O'Hara was 35 yards downfield blocking DE Osi Umenyiora while talking trash the whole time. Osi likes to do that to pass the time in mid-play. Btw, the play was a screen pass that was keyed by a nice block by RT Kareem McKenzie. *Butler was right up at the line to make a few stops on running plays. *K Lawrence Tynes' FGs: 30ish (good), 36 (good), 41 (good), 45 (no good, wide left), 33 (no good, wide left), 36 (good). *LB Antonio Pierce got up to bat down a pass by QB David Carr. THE BACKUPS *CB Kevin Dockery won another matchup with WR Sinorice Moss to knock away a 1-on-1 red-zone fade. *WR Michael Jennings had perfect position on CB R.W. McQuarters on a TD fade. McQuarters was turned by Jennings on that play, but he bounced back with an INT the next time those two matched up. *RB Ahmad Bradshaw had a sick cutback that drew "Woos" from his teammates. *Hixon made a terrific catch that I couldn't see, but the crowd's reaction told me it was a heck of a grab as he went out of bounds with Ross in coverage. When Hixon came back to the line, Manning yelled out, "Good job, Dom." After a shaky start to camp, Hixon continues to impress. *Carr had an excellent practice. His best ball of camp was a bullet to WR Brandon London on a quick slant in team drills. On the next play, he scrambled forward and found TE Darcy Johnson crossing in front of him. Carr later delivered a strike on a deep in to Jennings, who dropped the ball. Not a great practice for Jennings, who also couldn't haul in a deep ball from Manning. Woulda been a tough catch, but it was makeable. Carr later threw a seed to WR D.J. Hall on an in and had a TD to Toomer on a fade after the veteran receiver turned CB Sam Madison. *QB Anthony Wright, perhaps feeling the heat of a good practice by Carr, came up way short on a sail route for TE Eric Butler, who was open. Wright had great protection on the play. *WR Craphonso Thorpe had two nice TDs past rookie CB Terrell Thomas in 1-on-1s. *RB Derrick Ward fumbled downfield. Tough to see who knocked it out, but Dockery was nearby. Ward later had a bad drop. *With Wright under center, the second-team offense ran a pitch to the outside when the defense was blitzing up the middle. If it was an audible, it was a nice call by Wright. THE YOUNG GUYS *CB Geoffrey Pope either thought he was a foot taller or the ball was closer than it was because he went up for an INT and didn't come close. *Great ball by Woodson on a deep go down the right sideline for WR Sinorice Moss, who had a couple of strides on Pope. *London followed up his catch from Clark with a great leaping catch in front of S Michael Johnson, who got over to London on the sideline too late. London had a ton of catches tonight, including a pretty TD on a post from Wright. *RB Danny Ware had a bad drop on a quick out in 7-on-7s. *LB Bryan Kehl had an interception that I might have been able to make. He just sat in a zone and waited for Woodson's pass to hit him in the numbers. Woodson was looking for Thorpe on a crossing route a few yards deeper. *Good coverage by LB Jonathan Goff on a quick throw from Woodson to Eric Butler that fell incomplete. *Who was covering Hall on a play-action TD in the red zone? Not Knight, who was late getting back after biting on Manning's fake. And finally, just a note about the "scoop and score" exercise the defense uses on all balls on the ground, even if they're incomplete passes. I just think it's getting old for these guys because they're not reacting as quickly as they did last year when they had fun with it. Does it mean anything in the grand scheme of things? Probably not, but we'll see.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div>
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (ghoti @ Jul 30 2008, 02:54 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>Vacciano was just on WFAN. Most of what he said was obvious, but here are some things I remember that weren't - Said that he thoght Sam Mitchell had a chance to start and he wasn't convinced about Corey Webster. - Said David Carr is so gun shy, Anthony Wright is still the favorite to win the backup QB job. - Said Darcy Johnson might play a lot and he has a chance to beat out Kevin Boss, as he would have last year if he didn't get injured - Said Coughlin would rather use a 3rd receiver like Steve Smith than a TE to catch passes, which is pretty obvious but still interesting. - RAVED about Kenny Phillips. Said he gives the Giants something they have never had. Quote "He's gonna hurt somebody, either on his own team or the other team". Said he has "incredible closing speed" and appears out of nowhere at the ball "whether he is in position or not". - Said Kiwanuka was supposed to only practice in the mornings, but he convinced the staff to let him go full bore and he has not missed a snap or had any slowdown or complications whatsoever. He will play LB be on the field with Tuck and Osi on passing downs so they can terrorize QBs once again this season.</div> Both Vacchiano and Garafalo have done nothing but praise Phillips so far. I'm so excited to see him play. One thing I read somewhere (not sure if its in any of those reports) is that Justin Tuck and Kiwanuka have both alternated between D-line and LB. Tuck's obviously played most of the snaps at the DE spot, but its interesting nonetheless. I get the feeling that Spags still has a trick or two left up his sleeve. Vacchiano mentioned in today's report, in passing, that Eli's had a great camp so far. That was a big relief to me. I know he's the hero and Super Bowl MVP, but I still think Eli's got so much more potential to live up to.
Sad to hear Phillips is looking good. I was afraid of that. Nice to see Sinorice Moss look every bit the bust Anthony Fasano was for us! Unfortunately, I think Steve Smith is the real deal...so that lessens the loss. What's the plan with the starting DL? Is Kiwi/Osi at DE; Tuck inside? Or Tuck and Osi at DE and Kiwi at LB? I saw the stuff on passing downs, but wouldn't it make more sense to have Kiwi/Osi at DE and Tuck inside? Unless of course, you are trying ot overload one side with Kiwi/Osi..... What's the base defense package looking like, on the DL?
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Vintage)</div><div class='quotemain'>Is Kiwi/Osi at DE; Tuck inside? Or Tuck and Osi at DE and Kiwi at LB? I saw the stuff on passing downs, but wouldn't it make more sense to have Kiwi/Osi at DE and Tuck inside? Unless of course, you are trying ot overload one side with Kiwi/Osi..... What's the base defense package looking like, on the DL?</div> I think our base D, will have Tuck-Cofield-Robbins-Umenyiora at the trenches, with Kiwanuka-Pierce-Wilkinson (if he's healthy) lining up behind them. I wondered if they'd move Kiwi back to DE after last season, but the organization seems pretty confident in him as a linebacker. And to their credit, he's supposedly looked pretty good at that spot so far in training camp. Of course, if I learned anything from last year its that the base D package only means so much to Spagnuolo. I'm pretty sure Tuck will still move inside for some snaps (he was too effective there not too), and I think Kiwi will have his hands on the ground for some plays. Jay Alford's also going to deserve more time this season. And Kenny Phillips is bound to be blitzing if he continues to hit people as hard as he's been doing so far.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Vintage @ Jul 30 2008, 04:59 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>What's the plan with the starting DL? Is Kiwi/Osi at DE; Tuck inside? Or Tuck and Osi at DE and Kiwi at LB? I saw the stuff on passing downs, but wouldn't it make more sense to have Kiwi/Osi at DE and Tuck inside? Unless of course, you are trying ot overload one side with Kiwi/Osi..... What's the base defense package looking like, on the DL?</div> The Giants lined up with four DE on passing downs a lot last year, with Tuck moving inside. The base package will be Osi/Tuck at DE and Kiwi at LB with Robbins and Cofield inside. Renaldo Wynn should play a lot at end to keep things fresh. Jay Alford had a good rookie year and will back up the inside.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Chutney @ Jul 30 2008, 05:06 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div><div class='quotemain'>And Kenny Phillips is bound to be blitzing if he continues to hit people as hard as he's been doing so far.</div> Don't forget James Butler, who can't cover his pool but is an excellent pass rusher.
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">THURSDAY JULY 31ST, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Your Thursday practice report: INJURIES *As noted before, DE Justin Tuck (foot) and WR Steve Smith (groin) were back in action. So was T Adam Koets (vertigo). *WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), Mario Manningham (quad) and David Tyree (knee/PUP) and LB Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) did not practice. THE STARTERS *Welcome to the first section, S Kenny Phillips. That's right, the first-round pick was working with the first-team defense today. S Michael Johnson was bumped to the second unit. What does it mean? Well coach Tom Coughlin said the team is just working some guys into different situations, but I'm taking it as a sign that the coaches are seeing what I'm seeing. *Then again, Johnson was back with the first unit in goal-line drills. So who knows? *Phillips made an immediate impact by deflecting a pass from QB Eli Manning for Smith on an in cut. S James Butler grabbed the deflection for an INT. *Tuck made a one-armed stop on RB Derrick Ward. He also beat RT Kareem McKenzie for what would have been a sack on the play that ended in Butler's INT. *Not a good start to team drills for Manning, who overshot TE Kevin Boss by about 15 yards on a flag route. Maybe it was a wet ball or perhaps Manning was rusty. Whatever the case, it was probably Manning's worst throw of camp. He had a couple of bad ones later on, especially a swing pass to the right to FB Madison Hedgecock. *LT David Diehl had an excellent practice with DE Osi Umenyiora looking a little hyper out there today. Umenyiora was juking, swimming and spinning all over the place while Diehl stayed compact and swallowed him up. It made me think of last year when Umenyiora was beating Diehl on a daily basis and everybody was panicking. *G Chris Snee tossed rookie LB Bryan Kehl like a rag doll on one play. *LB Mathias Kiwanuka had a PD on a pass from Manning to WR Steve Smith. It was a heckuva play for Kiwanuka, who made his way to the sideline to break up the pass. But ever the perfectionist, Kiwanuka was upset with himself that he didn't hang onto the ball. THE BACKUPS *Smith made the play of the day with a deep ball down the left side from Manning that he had to wrestle away from CB Corey Webster. Smith had to come back a bit and Webster was first to get his hands on the ball, but Smith made it a tie as they came to the ground. Good thing the refs are here to rule on that one. Smith celebrated with a leaping hip bump with RB Derrick Ward. Guess the refs missed that one after their little presentation this morning. *WR Sinorice Moss had a step on CB R.W. McQuarters on a deep go down the left sideline from QB Anthony Wright. Moss, however, couldn't grab the ball that glanced off his fingertips. *QB David Carr fired high of a wide-open Moss on a quick slant in the end zone. Carr must not be used to such a small target yet. *DE Dave Tollefson came flying through to lay a big hit on RB Reuben Droughns. The hit was too big for Coughlin, who yelled at Tollefson and told him to take it easy. *LB Zak DeOssie then upstaged Tollefson by absolutely flattening RB Kay-Jay Harris on a pitch to the right side. DeOssie did a great job keeping contain and then finishing the play. Coughlin didn't yell at DeOssie. He was talking to him as DeOssie trotted away. Not sure what was being said. THE YOUNG GUYS *Great stop by Kehl, who filled the hole on a stretch run to the left by RB Danny Ware. *DE Wallace Gilberry had another sack today. *Koets, perhaps still feeling a little dizzy, moved early on one play. *S Nehemiah Warrick had a sliding INT on a ball from QB Andre' Woodson that pretty much hit him in the face. Warrick was backpedaling and tried to stop but slid on the wet field. Still, he made the nice catch. And finally, a note from the start of practice: a gentleman wearing an old Cowboys Deion Sanders jersey was rightly booed by the crowd. When I say he was rightly booed, I don't mean it because he was wearing an opposing jersey. In this country, you can wear whatever you want. No, my beef is that the jersey is so worn you can barely read the name or number. Get a new one, bro. A man in a Chad Pennington jersey was also booed. I'm not sure why.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div>
<div align="center"><span style="font-size:14pt;line-height:100%"><u><span style="font-family:Century Gothic">FRIDAY AUGUST 1ST, 2008</span></u></span></div> <div align="center"><span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%">Morning Practice</span></div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>ALBANY, N.Y. - Before I get to the report, a quick note about a special visitor the Giants welcomed today to camp: Lt. Gen. Ray Odierno, a Rockaway native and huge Giants fan who will be headed back to Iraq next month. Odierno wrote the team an inspirational note last summer that talked about a "team-first" approach. "We're real honored to have him here," coach Tom Coughlin said. "He's real special." Odierno spoke to the team after practice and said he would relay a message back to the troops in Iraq. "I'll tell them how much the players came up to me afterward and said how much they were indebted to the soldiers and Marines in Iraq," Lt. Gen. Odierno said. "They realize what they're giving up so they can do what they're doing here, which is play professional football." Now, your morning practice report: INJURIES *S Kenny Phillips, fresh off his first reps with the starters yesterday, was on the bike today and did not practice because of a leg strain. Doesn't sound real serious. *Also out were: WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle), Amani Toomer (left leg), David Tyree (knee/PUP) and Mario Manningham, LBs Gerris Wilkinson (knee/PUP) and Zak DeOssie (back), DEs Osi Umenyiora (hip) and Justin Tuck (foot), S Craig Dahl (knee) and CB Sam Madison (sports hernia). THE STARTERS *I'm picking up on a theme here: the first play of team drills is often a bomb. Today, it was a pretty one - a deep post on the right from QB Eli Manning to training-camp Pro Bowl WR Domenik Hixon, who did a good job of getting a couple of steps behind CB Corey Webster. *A few minutes later, Hixon (who I'm thinking has already made the team) made an awesome adjustment to come back and catch a fade as Webster's momentum kept him going upfield. He then caught a couple of hooks and comebacks - all with Webster in coverage. What a practice for Hixon this morning. *DT Barry Cofield, obviously jealous of Fred Robbins, shot into the backfield to make a stop on RB Derrick Ward. *With LB Antonio Pierce coming through for a sack, Manning threw off his back foot for WR Brandon London. S James Butler came underneath for a leaping INT. *I mentioned yesterday that Manning's worst pass of camp was a missed flag for Boss. Today, he topped that by failing to hit assistant video director Carmen Pizzano in the video tower on a kill the clock play. With Pizzano, you have to hit him in the numbers. He's got terrible hands when he has to reach up. *And finally, your first fight of camp. What a stunner: it involved G Rich Seubert. (That was a shocker to me," Coughlin joked.) If you bet on Seubert as the first guy to get into a fight, you'll be paid roughly what winning bettors got when Big Brown won the Preakness. Anyway, Seubert's dance partner today was LB Danny Clark. The two tried to rip each others' helmets off, which Clark was able to do. Eventually, they were separated. On the next play, Seubert moved early. You'd better believe the defense let him have it. THE BACKUPS *Nice ball from QB Anthony Wright to TE Michael Matthews on an out to the second level with Pierce trailing in coverage. *TE Darcy Johnson, who might be starting to get comfortable and more aggressive, made a great juggling catch on an out (looked like the same play as Matthews' catch) with LB Chase Blackburn trying to screen him. Johnson later had a bad drop on a quick hook, which prodded RB Brandon Jacobs to yell, "Come on, offense, pick this (bleep) up." WR Steve Smith responded to Jacobs' decree by wrestling a ball away from CB Aaron Ross on a hitch. *Aside from the Matthews catch, Blackburn had a very good practice. He was around the ball and made a few stops near the line. *CB R.W. McQuarters made a great break to knock away a ball on a slant. McQuarters undercut the route. *WR Michael Jennings had a good morning. He ran a lot of short stuff and found some soft spots in zones. Lots of hooks for him today. THE YOUNG GUYS *LB Jonathan Goff, who played the middle in college, has been working on the outside the past few days. Goff had a sack this morning on a blitz. On that play, Wright, feeling the pressure, heaved a ball deep down the left side for WR Brandon London that was picked off by S Nehemiah Warrick. *OL Jonathan Palmer pulled on a counter to the right side on one play but just jogged instead of getting after a defender. RB Danny Ware, tired of waiting for Palmer to do something, brushed him aside and got upfield. OL coach Pat Flaherty then yelled at Palmer to "get a hat on somebody." That means plant your helmet in somebody's chest. Toward the end of practice, Palmer was stood up by DT Ogemdi Nwagbuo, who shed Palmer to make the stop. *DE Wallace Gilberry continues to impress me. I don't know exactly what the coaches are thinking, but he's making plays out there. Today, he ate LT Guy Whimper's breakfast as he ripped by him to make a stop on RB Reuben Droughns in the backfield. *And your London moment of the day was a nice leaping catch on a flag near the right sideline to end practice. The guy covering him was wearing a blue jersey with a 7 in his number. I couldn't quite see who it was because the swarm of players walking up to Coughlin for the final huddle blocked my view. Warrick was on the other side of the field, though, so it had to be Butler.</div> <div align="center">Source: NJ Star-Ledger</div> <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>It’s not a sign that he’s going to be the starter, but<span style="font-size:12pt;line-height:100%"> rookie Kenny Phillips, the Giants’ top pick, was working with the first team in practice yesterday.</span> He replaced Michael Johnson and lined up alongside James Butler. I believe those were the first first-team snaps he took. “We’re going to continue to do that,” Tom Coughlin said. “There were some situation defenses we played (yesterday) that we had him come out for. He’s going to continue to get that kind of work. We’re moving around some of our nickel and dime stuff, putting different people in different spots. We’re just trying to give everybody a lot of work.” Still, it’s more proof that Phillips - one of the more exciting players in camp so far - is definitely in the mix, along with Butler, Johnson and veteran Sammy Knight. Craig Dahl can’t be forgotten either, since he did start two games last year. Oh, and Phillips didn’t disappoint, either, making a very nice play to break up an Eli Manning pass intended for Steve Smith. Phillips deflected it into the air and Butler picked it off. A few more belated highlights from yesterday: • Smith, returning from his groin injury, made a nice catch down field where he wrestled the ball away from Corey Webster. • RB Reuben Droughns had a bad drop on a pass from Andre Woodson in a 7-on-7 drill. He was wide open and had to leap a little, but it went right through his hands. • Interesting note about that play I described above, where Phillips tipped the Manning pass into the hands of Butler. The crowd cheered. That’s noteworthy because in past years there’d be an audible groan for every Manning interception. I guess times have changed. Maybe the quarterback’s going to get a honeymoon after all. • WR Plaxico Burress (ankle) did not practice (so much for a “mid-week” return) and neither did WR Mario Manningham (quad). • A little flash of good hands from Michael Matthews, the forgotten tight end, who came up with a low pass from Manning that reached him and the ground at the same time. • Great catch by Brandon Jacobs on a flare from Manning. Actually it was a great pass, too. Jacobs was hardly looking back and Manning zipped it to him right over his shoulder. I don’t think there was any place else the ball could’ve been where it could’ve been caught. And if Jacobs didn’t turn his head at exactly the right moment, it would have whizzed by.</div> <div align="center">Source: NY Daily News</div>
