New York Giants training camp news and notes for Aug. 2 include Saquon Barkley showcasing those wideout skills.
For the first time since training camp opened, the New York Giants had a morning practice which started at 10:45 a.m. ET. The Giants were once again in pads as they had been the previous four practices, as Pat Shurmur works on making the Giants a physical and disciplined team.
Although there were many high impact plays, there were three takeaways from Thursday’s practice.
Saquon Barkley has the skill-set of a wide receiver
Simply put, the overall skill-set of Saquon Barkley is off the charts. There seems to be nothing he can’t do on a football field.
During 11-on-11 drills, the Giants offense was in a formation that featured Barkley split out wide left as a receiver, Sterling Shepard slot left, Rhett Ellison lined up in the slot on the right side, Hunter Sharp split out wide right, and Shane Smith in the backfield. Barkley was able to easily beat Olivier Vernon on an in-route and caught a pass from Eli Manning.
Saquon matched out wide vs. Olivier. Vernon. Not fair. #giants pic.twitter.com/j6zcTZIAiP
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) August 2, 2018
It has become obvious that linebackers have no chance of covering Barkley one-on-one. Barkley could have at least 60 receptions in this offense.
Russell Shepard had an impressive day
When you hear that a receiver with the last name Shepard had an impressive day, you would think it was Sterling Shepard. But on Thursday, the receiver with the name Shepard that stole the show on Thursday was Russell Shepard.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Shepard beat Eli Apple on a deep pass thrown by Eli Manning, and later in practice, caught another deep pass thrown by Kyle Lauletta.
?TOP PLAY ALERT?@LSUShep10 takes it to the ?#GiantsCamp #GiantsPride pic.twitter.com/YC85Fu8QnH
— New York Giants (@Giants) August 2, 2018
It was the kind of standout performance that bodes well for Shepard as he competes for a roster spot with the rest of the talent Giants receiving corps.
Davis Webb struggled
Davis Webb has been one of the many bright spots throughout training camp. But on Thursday he struggled. He threw several errant passes and one of them was intercepted by cornerback B.W. Webb. Davis Webb will look to bounce back in Friday’s practice.
