The New York Giants are welcoming back rookie safety Tyler Nubin to practice today. Nubin has been sidelined since last week with a calf injury, but is returning to the practice field on Thursday morning.
At the start of training camp, Nubin seemed destined to open his rookie season as the team’s starting free safety. However, he has some ground to make up while returning from injury.
Third-year safety Dane Belton has taken advantage of the opportunity to play with the first team while Nubin was out, igniting a battle for the starting job this summer.
The Giants have a position battle forming at free safety
Nubin will return to practice this weekend, gunning for the starting free safety job that he was once expected to be given. But in the NFL, everything is earned, not given, and Nubin’s injury cost him valuable practice reps to put toward earning that starting job.
In the meantime, Belton has been making plays, putting himself in prime position to be the team’s starting safety this season. The former fourth-round draft pick has been a continuous playmaker whenever he has seen the field in his young NFL career but has yet to carve out a full-time role for himself. That could change this summer.
Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen told reporters on Thursday that the starting free safety job is Belton’s “job to lose” following a strong opening to training camp:
“Obviously we want them all out there practicing. It’s tough to improve when you’re not practicing,” Bowen said of Nubin’s absence to reporters (h/t SNY).
“One thing I’ll say for Dane [Belton], he’s taken ownership of it [the starting free safety job] and he’s fighting like hell to earn that job — which he should. It’s his job to lose right now. It is his job to lose.”
He continued to praise Belton, highlighting the instincts that the 23-year-old defensive back has shown in practice:
“I think the instincts show up, the playmaking,” Bowen told reporters. “I think he’s smart, he communicates, all those things. You can’t really tell a whole lot about the tackling and some of that stuff right now just based on where we’re at, but he’s made plays. This first week, he’s shown up.”
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Does Nubin still have a chance of winning the starting job?
Nubin will be ramped up at practice this week upon his return, giving him the opportunity to fight back against Belton for the starting job. While Belton is currently winning the race, it’s a long summer ahead, and this job will ultimately be a marathon to win.
Belton has totaled four interceptions, five passes defended, and three fumble recoveries despite playing just 686 total defensive snaps in his career so far. He has a knack for getting his hands on the football, which has been demonstrated during training camp as well as the Iowa product has nabbed some interceptions in practice.
Nubin, meanwhile, is entering the NFL with plenty of talent and high expectations as the team’s second-round pick in this year’s draft. He finished his collegiate career as the University of Minnesota’s all-time interception leader with 13 picks.
The Giants have a young and inexperienced defensive backfield to work with this season. But there is also plenty of potential for this secondary to develop into a strong unit. The battle at free safety will be among the most exciting to watch this summer.
