Will Beatty’s Return
Giant’s left tackle, Will Beatty will make his return to the lineup tonight in Indy. Beatty has been training hard in camp and but hasn’t seen any game action yet this preseason. If Robert Mathis does start, it will provide a very good test for the returning tackle.
“I am expecting a lot from myself. I am going up against (Robert) Mathis, and it is his 11th year in the league. (I know) it’s a preseason game, but his intensity to the game and how he plays it; he will look at it as a regular-season game. Each snap he gets, he is going to give it his best. This is my marker of how well I have trained during the offseason to recover and get back to top shape.”
Mario Manningham’s Fight For a Roster Spot
Meeting with reporters earlier this week, Manningham sidestepped a question about the wide receiver competition. Many eyes has been on Corey Washington this offseason making plays all over the practice field and making a nice grab in the preseason. With Mario Manningham returning to the Giant’s this year he has looked very inconsistent up until this point. He will have to prove himself to make this team and that chance will be in these upcoming games.
“I’m just going out and playing,” Manningham said. “I’m not worrying about that. I’m just going out and controlling what I can control. I’ll leave it up to the staff to make adjustments.”
Tom Coughlin spoke about Manningham Wednesday and believes he still can do more.
“That is not an easy one,” Coughlin admitted. “Some days it is better than others. I think he is growing in some confidence, but we have been at this for a while and would certainly like to see him at his very best over a period of time, so we can assess what we could expect. He is working at it, he’s working hard, but certainly I think there can be more.”
Giants Elite Secondary?
They certainly can be very good this year with the players they have but this will be a great matchup to show their worth. Going on the road into Indy vs an Andrew Luck run offense will certainly put the Giants defensive backs into game mode. If they can show that they can go hold up Reggie Wayne, TY Hilton, and old fiend Hakeem Nicks, they can make a statement to the rest of the league real fast.
“I think Luck is an elite quarterback,” Giants safety Antrel Rolle said. “He’s an outstanding young and rising star in the league. I think he possesses great tools and great poise as a quarterback. This is going to be the best test that we’ve done thus far this year with the receiver tandem they do have.”
“It’s going to be a great test for us,” said cornerback Walter Thurmond. “We’re striving to be the best secondary group out there and one of the best defenses to play the game this year, so it’s going to be a great test. They have a great ground game, Andrew Luck is a phenomenal passer. It’s really going to test us.”
SHOW ME SOME OFFENSE
Honestly Eli Manning was 0-2 against Pittsburgh last week and if it wasn’t for Rashad Jenning’s long touchdown run the Giants would be looking pretty pathetic on the offensive side of the ball. Who am I kidding? They did look pathetic! Is it that bad for the coach to expect some consistency in the passing game?
“We would like to be a little bit more consistent and have a little bit better tempo on the offensive side of the ball,” said head coach Tom Coughlin.
Some fans are still hoping for that deep ball or that pretty pass downfield, but I’m just looking for any pass at this point. They’ve looked decent in practice, but have not shown much during the game. Hopefully they can get something against a weaker Colt’s secondary.
Friend Or Foe?
Former Giants wideout Hakeem Nicks left in the offseason to sign with the Colts. He will get his first chance tonight to show the Giants what they are missing. It will be a weird moment for Giants fans and players alike.
“It’s going to be weird. I was watching him this past week in that good ole Colts jersey. It’s not the same, but he’s healthy from what I hear, he’s in the best shape in his life from what I hear and see. I’m going to shoot him a text to talk junk to him, too, while I’m at it,” said Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz.
Bobby O’Hara:PureSportsNY