Training camp is underway for the New York Giants, which means position battles and plenty of exciting activities are in the near future. The Giants have been posting videos from their training sessions, including some of their star players. Saquon Barkley, Sterling Shepard, Jabrill Peppers, and Daniel Jones headline the group.
You wanted to see Giants football, here you go!
-Saquon (@saquon) insane thighs/calfs ?
-Sterling Shepard's (@sterl_shep3) speed ?
-Daniel Jones's arm ?Man, football is here!! #NYG pic.twitter.com/Ba8mpF0cYA
— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) August 4, 2020
However, if there’s anyone that stands out from the rest, it’s Saquon Barkley and his huge legs. Having continued to work out through the off-season, Barkley seems to be in great shape. Last season, he suffered a high ankle sprain against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which forced him to miss three games and play on the injured ankle for the remainder of the campaign.
It was clear that Barkley was hampered by the injury, as his pass blocking was deficient and his ability to bounce the ball outside was not up to his standards. Former head coach Pat Shurmur ran Barkley up the middle far too often, possibly as a way to limit his jump-cutting which could further hurt his ankle.
With that being said, Barkley seems to be back to normal and is cutting and jumping regularly in practice. The training leading up to the regular season will be essential for him in what is hopefully a career year.
The New York Giants need rookie Saquon back:
Back in his rookie season behind a subpar offensive line, Barkley posted 1,307 yards on the ground and 721 receiving yards. He earned 15 touchdowns in a Pro Bowl-caliber season. However, even in an injured year, he managed to rush for over 1,000 yards and score 8 touchdowns. Most running backs would die for his type of production when playing at 50%.
The Giants are optimistic about 2020, despite utilizing plenty of youth players. Sterling Shepard referred to the offense as a “family” on Instagram, and that is a type of mentality they need to install if they wish to play together and cohesively. The team has not played as a unit in recent years and having a new head coach Joe Judge, who expects the coaching staff to do their job correctly instead of having older players coach for them. Ultimately, every player has a job to do and they must be focused on doing theirs and theirs alone.