You have to love the Internet. If you search, there is a wealth of information from coaches about football. You’ll find, after some searching, old playbooks. I came across the 2009 Giants defensive playbook. This is when Bill Sheridan was coordinator. It’s a fascinating look at defenses and teams. I’ll embed it here. Take a look. Over the next few days, we’ll take out some things and break it down a bit. Enjoy:
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The Giants third round pick was a bit of a surprise, the undersized Pacmanesque cornerback Jayron Hosley. First there were the off the field incidents and a positive drug test at the combine, which was pretty stupid. So let’s move on and hope he grows up….fast. The other defensive player picked was in the seventh round, a little known defensive tackle and freaky athlete from Germany named Markus Kuhn. I am also going to mention some of the UDFAs and one in particular Janzen Jackson later in this article.
Jayron Hosley seems like a likable kid who just needs some growing up to do, he’s a junior at college and still very young. He now has to realize he is accountable for his actions and is a professional football player. With that brings fame, money and all the trappings of it, if he wants to reach his dreams he has to be on the straight and narrow, the question is what are those dreams? Are they to be a great football player and someday go into the hall of fame or to be the king of party and go into the hall of shame. Only he knows or will have to find out what is in his heart. Reese has experience with troubled kids and if he drafts them I have confidence they will be OK.
Hosley has little man syndrome, he thinks he’s bigger than what he really is. That’s great but it can cut your career short, many great yet smaller players just could not take the pounding on their bodies. That brings to mind one of my favorite players Bob Sanders of the Colts, I could remember a few seasons ago him actually launching himself in the air to make a tackle. He was a very powerful man although small at 5’8”, he was a punishing safety, but for everything he dished out he took and was always injured. Hosley is going to have to learn finesse like Deion Sanders, it’s good he has courage and aggression which is what is needed to play defense, but now he’s going up against bigger, stronger and faster people. Jayron chill out a little, learn technique and finesse otherwise you’re will have a great and short career.
Let’s break it down, at 5’10” and 171 pounds he has good enough height but a slim frame. There is just so much room to add muscle mass to it, although I can see him adding some, he is still growing. If there is anybody drafted by the Giants in 2012 that is NFL ready Hosley is the one, he has excellent ball skills. A very confident person he plays that way on the field. He is someone that is not going to let anybody take advantage of him, it’s that kind of attitude that helps make a great defensive back. Hosley will get to that ball, either knock it away or intercept it even against much bigger receivers. He also returns punts very well, he has great vision on the field no matter what he is doing and is very dangerous on the return after an INT. As an athlete he is average for the position but has what I thought was an excellent back pedal with very good hips. Hosley’s speed is good at around a low to mid 4.4/40 but plays even faster on the field. His arms are average in length but it’s the ball skills that separate him from so many other DBs. It is my opinion that he is a better DB than some drafted before him, his slight frame and drug test dropped him in the draft.
Jayron seemed to be making the calls for the secondary in some film, so he must have a good understanding of schemes. As a tackler he has good technique and wraps or at least makes sure the ball carrier is down or out of bounds, he is always around the ball even on running plays to make sure the ball carrier does not advance. In that he’s a smart and natural football player, he can even rush the passer effectively. One play I found amusing, it was a screen pass and he had a straight shot at the 300 pound guard, he hesitated and thinking better of it ran around him to break up the play. His first instinct was to take on the guard but stopped himself, so there is no question about his survival instincts and intelligence, he would have been pancaked.
The Giants got a steal and he will be seeing time on the field from day one. Prince you better step it up or this kid will take your job, first round pick and 4.3 speed or not, it won’t matter Hosley is a ball hog in the best of ways. The Giants fans are going to love this kid from day one. On many draft boards he was around the fifth rated CB. ESPN even did a piece on him before the positive drug tests and how he has such great recovery ability and why he’s such a dangerous defensive back. The more I look at these players the more it looks like the Giants got first round talent in all three rounds, Hosley is a first round talent without doubt.
In the seventh round the Giants went with a player who has athletic ability over actual college production. Markus Kuhn is close to 6’5” and 300 pounds, he ran a fantastic 4.89/40 at the combine, pictures show a huge man with very little body fat, he’s solid. Surprisingly that body does not transfer over to the weight room, he’s not that strong. He has straight line speed but does not cover ground laterally that well. He’s a one gap penetrating DT, that’s what the Giants do so he fits the scheme, that’s a good start for a rookie. He moved around a bit and ran stunts so he must understand what he is supposed to do on the field, he does not have that much experience. Kuhn can overpower most college offensive lineman one on one but is taken out by double team too easily. He doesn’t fight if over matched, he seems to give in. He also plays high and without leverage, he’s going to get eaten up by even lower tier technically sound offensive lineman. He’s very raw but willing, if he does make the roster it will be on outstanding special teams play. I see him as only ever being a practice team player.
Maybe Mel Kiper’s saying he looks like Tarzan and plays like Jane might apply here somewhat. There would be upside if he were younger, he’s 26, he does not move that well on a football field considering his fast 40. He either has to lose weight and move to DE or gain weight and strength to become an anchor on the interior of the defensive line. Right now he is not near a NFL quality football player from what I have seen, most seventh round draft choices aren’t and are considered prospects. I think this was a wasted pick that could have been used on a developmental blocking tightend or for a trade to move up and take a more talented player early in the draft.
Talk about problem children and Janzen Jackson is a poster child. He was dismissed from Tennessee for multiple failed drug tests and other infractions, he ended up at McNeese State. Reese decided to take a chance on this kid too, he is a talented football player that has the ability to make the team and have a good NFL career. At about 5’11 ½” and 188 pounds Janzen is a little small for a safety and slow for a CB with a 4.51/40 at his pro day, a slower 4.64 at the combine. At the combine he showed good athleticism and covered ground quickly, his backpedal was pretty good, not great but acceptable enough to get a shot at the NFL, he needs to get stronger though. On the football field he is aggressive, aware of what’s going on and gets to the ball, sometimes takes questionable angles but plays faster than his timed speed, that helps recovery, he has ball skills and reminds me of Hosley a little. Most of all he has the swagger DBs should have. He needs time working with the coaching staff and in the weight room. Once he’s around the guys I’m sure he will grow up fast, the Giants are a family. Jackson has some potential although on the small side, I can see him being a good backup for many years. I read he had wrist surgery and that was the issue with his lack of strength and lighter weight when measured. After watching film I saw an improved player in 2011 at McNeese State over 2010 at Tennesse.
Other defensive UDFAs signed are JoJo Nicolas a safety from Miami with some playing ability and upside, DE Adwale Ojomo who does not have any in my opinion and DE Matt Broha. At 6’4” and 255 pounds, Broha can run a 4.8/40, not bad, he has a nice frame to add some mass and could eventually be the second helping or coming of Dave Tollefson, a fan favorite, lunch pail type player. He could be a special teams standout but is there room for him on a super bowl team? I think you’ll see him on the practice squad for a while until a lot of things work itself out as the seasons come and go. With hard work he might eventually be the 53rd man, time will tell as with all the young players.
It seems to me Fewell was telling Reese get me some versatile cover guys and I can understand that. The NFL is going more and more toward vertical passing offenses and away from power running. Yet they still want to have the ability to run, so teams are trying to do that by committee. Flexibility and diversified offensive attacks are what defenses are going to have to deal with. That dictates a good mix of size and speed on a defense but we all know that if you get to the quarterback everything has a way of working out. Reese is trying to provide as much talent as possible both young and veteran for his coaches to make another super bowl run, it should be another interesting season.
Sad news here. The Giants have waived Chad Jones. As you remember, Jones was in that horrific car accident, and was working to make his comeback. Apparently, he’s further away from playing than we might have thought:
“Chad had a severe injury to his left leg, involving a complex tibial fracture with associated injury to muscle, nerves, and vascular structures,” Giants associate team physician Dr. Scott Rodeo said. “This type of injury is often limb threatening, and can sometimes require amputation. He has made a remarkable recovery to date, with successful salvage of the leg. However, at this time he has residual sensory loss, muscle weakness, and tenuous soft tissue coverage in the involved lower leg. The resultant functional impairment precludes his ability to perform physically at the level required for professional football.”
An awful break for Jones. We wish him the best, and hopefully we’ll be able to see him on the field, whether it’s for the Giants or not, some day.
Happy Monday! Let’s muse.
-Rookie mini-camp is under our belts. And I don’t think we can put too much stock into it. I think this is a chance to see athletic talent. Because no one is really going to know what to do, there’s no chemistry. It’s all talent.
-Giants did get two guys out of it: WR Brandon Collins of SE Louisiana and LB Jake Muasau, of Georgia State. I know nothing about these guys. They must’ve done something impressive. Still, they face an uphill battle.
-I think it’s good that David Wilson and Randle looked good. They’re supposed to in these situations.
-I think David Wilson is not going to be a starter. Rather, he’s going to be a dynamic change of pace back. 12-15 snaps, return duties. But in that limited time, he’s going to make some things happen.
-Is a change of pace worth a 1st round pick? Depends on what he does. If he can score some TDs, put up, oh I don’t know, 500+ yards, and give defenses a moment of pause, then I think it’s worth it.
-Couldn’t LaMichael James do the same thing? Perhaps. You can read our profile of him here.
-But when it comes to the draft, forget about value. If the Giants like a guy, they’re going to take him. If they had Wilson rated significantly higher than James, then that’s the right call.
-I think the argument about whether someone is a reach or not is moot. To us, they’re a reach. To the team, it’s a perfect fit. Many think Bruce Irvin was a reach, but Seattle clearly thought he was the best pass rusher in the draft ( I agree, by the way), and taking him high reflects that belief.
-There’s also this: Teams know more than draftniks. There are a lot of great draftniks out there. But teams simply have access to more information, valuable information that draftniks don’t.
-I don’t want to compare Wilson to James. I think Wilson can pound between the tackles more, and James faces an adjustment coming from a wide open spread system. But there are some similarities.
-Moving on to the line. I saw that David Diehl was at the Rangers game (go rangers!!!). My immediate thoughts: Is he going to be starting? Ourlads, who puts out the best depth charts out there, has him at left guard. They have Brewer at RT. My money is this: Diehl at RT, Boothe at LG. But the Giants know a lot more about Brewer than we do.
-Seeing what the Giants have in James Brewer is going to be fascinating come camp time. No one really knows. He’s big. He spent a year redshirting. We’ll see what that did.
-Rap interlude: I’ve mentioned Brother Ali here before. But I found this interview, and well it’s absolutely fascinating. An excerpt:
DX: You talked a bit about progression. Shadows on the Sun seemed like, “Meet Brother Ali and empathize with his story.” Then, as you got older, it seemed like Us was a calling to fans, asking everyone to look around at others’ lives. From my understanding, Mourning In America And Dreaming In Color is meant to make people look at themselves and at how society makes people act, feel or view the world. Is that a true statement, that this album will put a mirror in a lot of peoples’ faces? If so, how?
Brother Ali: I think we all have to be in the mirror. We all have a lot of soul searching to do in this country. “Mourning In America,” to mourn, and “Dreaming in Color,” to dream, so, I think that looking in the mirror, we have to come to grips with a lot of realities. We have to grow up and mature a lot as a society. Circumstances are forcing that to happen right now. The economic times we’re in are forcing us to look at ourselves and look at each other. Then, the “Dreaming in Color” part is about looking at the possibilities that are there. We’re going through a time of change. We’re in a time where our country and our society is changing. It’s undeniable, it’s impossible to ignore and it’s unavoidable. What we need to decide is what’s gonna be our role in that. The Trayvon Martin [murder] was such a great – not great in the sense that it was a good thing but great in the sense that it was big in American life in terms of what it symbolizes and the conversation that has come out of it has been really revealing. I was raised in a way where racial justice was always in the center of my life, always. It was a number one theme in my life. That led to me caring about justice for everybody but racial justice is what brings me to this. So, I’ve always been talking about this. The consensus lately, especially amongst privileged people is that, “It’s okay, racism is over. We’re post-racial. We’re colorblind. We got a Black president.” But these issues didn’t go away because we have a half-Black president, or a not-completely-White president. The issues are still there and they’re still really big. But, things like this Trayvon thing have forced these conversations to happen again. We see people revealing things that I don’t even know if they knew about themselves. The reality is that this country isn’t going to be majority-White for much longer…
Whether you agree or not, that is some incredibly provoking stuff. From a rapper? I’m telling you, Brother Ali is the real deal. Video time:
His Pandora station is also incredible.
-Is this make or break time for Jerrel Jernigan? Probably. It’s not his fault. He had no idea that Victor Cruz would become Victor Cruz. I think he’s going on a normal progression. Remember, a smaller school. Maybe he comes out and plays well. But his role is the slot, and I’m sorry Jerrel, but Victor Cruz has that locked up.
-And I’m sorry, but I think the Ramses Barden era is over ( if it ever even started. Not sure it did).
-Wondering if we’ll see Travis Beckum or Jake Ballard contribute this year. ACL’s are tricky. I think Martellus Bennett was a really solid signing.
-And I think Bear Pascoe is going to get a lot of reps, too. I think he’s so solid and underrated.
-Hell, use Hynoski in the passing game. He’s subtly effective.
-Chase Blackburn is the starting MIKE for now. I love Chase. He goes all out. You know what you get from him. He’s not the most talented, but he gets it done. He’s a stabilizing force. But, Boley and Rivers have so much more talent than him. Will be interesting to see if one of them end up in the middle.
-Blackburn, though, is the type of guy you win championships with. If I could get 53 guys with his effort and intensity, I’d be a happy man.
-Of course, it takes someone special to play like that. I think we all like to think that we’d go all out. But it’s not only mental. It’s physical. You’re so tired. You just have to push through. Easy to quit. Glad the Giants have a bunch of players like Chase.
It looks like Chase Blackburn will be the starting middle linebacker heading into camp. As Perry Fewell said:
“Chase goes back to that role. (Mark) Herzlich will have an opportunity to compete for that role. Greg Jones will have an opportunity to compete for that role,” Fewell said. “And we’re not opposed to putting Keith Rivers, giving him an opportunity to compete for that role. So there’s going to be competition.”
That’s not necessarily a ringing endorsement, but Blackburn is the leader in the clubhouse. Competition is a good thing, and there’s a long ways till Week 1. But Blackburn held down the fort playing MIKE, and was huge in the Super Bowl. He’s not flashy, but he certainly gets the job done.
Rookie camp started today. Some interesting vet tryouts: Limas Sweed, Jamaal Jackson. And we’re gonna try something new here, we’re going to Storify the tweets from camp. Let us know how it goes:
The Giants have signed first round pick David Wilson, along with all the other picks, according to Mike Garafolo. Wilson was signed to a 4 year deal.
As for the others:
Coughlin says Reese told him all the draft picks are signed, or at least should be shortly. #nyg
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) May 11, 2012
Everybody says Ruben Randle is NFL ready and I say no he’s not, he’s close though. He has all the tools but does not use them in a manner ready for the NFL right now. He’s still young, he needs a season with the Giants staff to learn the finer points, this off season means a lot of work for this young man. The Giants are good at developing receivers so I expect to see something in the 2012 season and to really come on in 2013. Adrien Robinson is a bit of a question, he’s a freaky athlete with raw ability known in college as a pure blocking tightend, but I would have rather seen a more polished and productive TE drafted and/or signed as a UDFA, they were available. I understand the upside and the way the Giants offense is designed, the tightend is a blocker and last choice to receive a pass. Even when Shockey was here he complained about the system. I’ll also go into some of the receivers the Giants signed as UDFAs in this blog. After viewing film of Randle I was surprised he was not drafted sooner, he has some amazing natural ability and more so than a player I really liked who was drafted sooner, Brain Quick who in my opinion went too soon and was a reach.
Now let’s break it down, at almost 6’3”, 210 pounds and 33” arms, Randle has really nice size for a WR, but ran slow at the Combine with a 4.55/40. He ran much better at his pro day with a 4.43 which proves he has some speed, he lacks top end sprinter speed, does it matter, no it really doesn’t. Randle has functional football speed, for receivers Bill Walsh called it full stride speed. In fact Randle is what Bill Walsh would consider a GREAT receiver prospect if you’ve read some of his writings on this, he would know about receivers. He runs fast enough at full stride as not to be caught from behind, more important it’s all about separation and ability to get open which he needs a little work on. Like all draftees especially juniors he needs to hit the weight room and develop his body. I think he can handle another 5-10 pounds of lean muscle which would help him get separation and fight off defenders. He has good technique in most areas and usually holds the ball high and tight. It’s a matter of getting the good things more consistent as with all rookies and teaching some new techniques.
Randle is said to be a high character person, that fits what the Giants organization is looking for in players. In fact he might just end up being the best player from the Giants 2012 draft. Because of the way television covers football I really was not able to see how he runs his routs that much, what little I did see was very good although he rounds off his cuts instead of sinking his hips to make defined quick squared off cuts which is the proper NFL technique on most routs. Until he learns this on a consistent basis and expands on the routs he can run effectively he will be a slot receiver, even though Gilbride said he would like to keep Cruz in the slot. Randle is said to be a good blocker coming from a run first offense, again due to the way television covers football I was not able to see it.
There is one thing that sets him apart from other receivers, his lower and upper body does not have to be doing the same thing at the same time, I know you just went what. It is most evident when a receiver is running a post, he has to reach back for the ball if it is thrown short, not having to break stride is a big advantage and can lead to long touchdown runs. Randle does not have to break stride, he can twist his upper body and catch the ball. That’s the wow factor, scouts talk about hips and this kid has them, what he does with his upper body does not affect what he is doing with his lower body, to a limit. It’s one of those natural abilities that cannot be taught, it seems as though Reese drafted players that have some type of natural athletic ability others do not. You see this with every catch he makes, not to mention how smooth he is, he glides across the field and looks much faster than his timed speed. He reminds me of Plaxico Burress in so many ways. Look at film of Randle then go look at film of the winning touchdown pass from Eli to Plax in the super bowl, that’s where you really see the resemblance, although Randle is a bit shorter.
My only real matter of contention with Randle is that he catches the ball with his body. He tracks the ball well and can catch it in the air but does not use proper hand technique when he does. It’s a simple adjustment. Maybe it was just the highlights but too many times he likes to cradle his arms and catch it in his body, in the NFL some of those catches would not have been. He is going to have to work at reaching out and grabbing the ball out of the air otherwise the defender will, Nicks excels at this technique especially with those huge hands, Randle does not have big hands and that may be a factor, although he has an advantage with height and long arms. It’s a different game in the NFL, most starting corners and safeties are good athletes too, he’s in for a bit of a shock at how technically sound they are. It’s not always going to be dropping into his hands while he’s wide open, he’s going to be fighting for the ball while in the air much more than he had to in college. The Giants have high hopes for Rueben Randle and after watching film of him so do I.
When I saw this pick I was like WHO, in Reese I trust so before I freaked out I went to find film and watched a bit of Adrien Robinson, there was not much film out there to watch. At 6’4” 264 pounds he is the JPP of tightends, Reese is correct about that, he ran a 4.5/40 and has almost a 40 inch vertical. Just looking at him you can see why he was drafted. It was to be molded into what the Giants do with their tightends which is block first, catch the ball when nobody is open and run with it for YAC. So they have their man, a very raw version though. I can see him being easily able to add 20+ pounds of muscle to his body without losing any athletic ability, becoming a bruising blocker and someone nobody in the secondary wants to have to tackle when he gets the ball.
I don’t expect to see much his first season but after that it’s going to be interesting as Bennett was only signed to a one year contract. Hopefully Beckum and Ballard will be 100% healthy, Bennett will be resigned after a productive breakout season and Robinson turns into a quality professional, that’s a lot of positive thinking on my part. Plus who knows what the Giants draft will look like next year which is a pretty good year for talent, although thin for TEs again. That maybe why Reese has taken this approach. In other words to sum it up I am not crazy about this pick, although I understand it and it might work out in time. We are talking about a lot of work for Robinson to ever be a starting TE in the NFL. Can he do it, that’s the gamble Reese took. He took a raw talent with unlimited upside and said to his coaches make him a player. He has the work ethic and athletic ability so it should be interesting to see if he does. It has been very hard to find any playing film of Robinson, the only thing was two wide open touchdowns and some tape of him doing receiver drills which were impressive. I think this will go down as a wasted pick but I hope not.
Jerry Reese also signed a few UDFA receivers, David Douglas, Julian Talley and Damian Davis. Douglas out of Arizona is 6’ and 206 pounds, he ran a 4.46 40 at his pro day. He is said to be a very solid receiver with good technique and smart, guys like him have a way of making it in the NFL after a few seasons and moving from team to team. Eventually they catch on somewhere and become solid pros. He was the receiver paired with the more notable Juron Criner drafted in the fifth round by the Oakland Raiders. Julian Talley from Massachusetts is 6’ and 190 pounds, he ran a 4.57 40 at his pro day. That’s slow for a WR but if you look at film Talley plays faster, he is a very good receiver. I was able to see some film on him and came away very impressed, he might move Jernigan out of his roster position which is in question if he doesn’t show something this pre-season, with all the receiver talent in camp he is in trouble.
Damian Davis is from a very small unknown college, a transfer from Oklahoma State, he is tall at 6’5” and thin at 190 pounds. I have little on Davis other than one short clip of him catching a TD pass. He looked tall and skinny and the level of competition was very low, they looked like a high school team, he has his work cut out for him. The word is he was supposed to have a good college career until he was dismissed from Oklahoma State in 2009 for unknown reasons, breaking rules which could mean anything. Talley looks like the best of them but Douglas has some talent too and speed. Like Davis I remember a few years back the Giants had a guy 6’6” with some upside that never could make it even close to the roster. With the stacked receiver core I doubt any of these guys get time but you never know, who heard of Victor Cruz?
Overall there is a lot of talent for Eli to throw to. Even the tighends are a pretty good bunch because of the way the Giants use them, they do not have to be great receivers, they have to block first. Bennett and the Bear should be enough until Ballard and Beckum become available. Randle will make the team and be the third receiver of that I am sure, Manningham will be a forgotten player in the Giants collective. After that who knows, it’s open and the players who excel on special teams will probably be seeing the most playing time, do you hear that Ramses? That especially includes Robinson who with his speed and size should be a special teams standout. Players like Barden and Jernigan among others have to step it up or their days are numbered. I wonder can Hixon come back from those knee injuries or is he going to be more of a player coach right now, he is very well versed in the technical side of playing wide receiver and kick returning.
With the Giants set to begin mini camp in just a few days, players are starting to sign their slotted rookie contracts. The latest one about to sign: Giants third-rounder CB Jayron Hosley. According to a report, Hosley’s deal will include a signing bonus of $515,000. The Giants will need Hosely to come in right away and compete for some playing time. He’ll add some depth in case CB Terrell Thomas or CB Prince Amukamara are slow to recover from previous injuries. Hosley had 3 interceptions last season. He led the NCAA with 11 picks as a sophomore.
According to league sources, the Giants have also inked a four-year deal with fourth-round offensive tackle Brandon Mosley. The rookie will come in and add depth on the offensive line, and, ideally, compete for the vacant RT spot with RT Kareem McKenzie out of the fold this season. The Giants, as you know will not be re-signing him.
UPDATE: According to Mike Garafolo, Mosley’s signing bonus should be for $300,584. Not bad.
May 15th, 2012 
Jeremy Fuchs 
Posted in 
