Giants hold first intrasquad scrimmage: 9 takeaways

The New York Giants held their first intrasquad scrimmage on Friday and as expected, it was hard-hitting, fast-paced and physical — just the way head coach Joe Judge prefers it.

The offense started a little slow, but finished out the two-plus hour scrimmage on a high note. Meanwhile, the defense appeared stout against the run early, but struggled to generate a consistent pass rush.

Those are just two things to take away from Friday’s scrimmage, but here’s a more detailed look at nine more.

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Daniel Jones is quietly improving

Daniel Jones took a few lumps early during Friday’s scrimmage, starting out a little rough and tossing an interception — something he has vowed to correct.

But it certainly wasn’t all bad. Jones rebounded after his shaky start and finished the day strong, completing 15 of his 26 passes for two touchdowns and the aforementioned interception.

“I was very pleased with the tone he sets in the huddle. He does it every day in practice. But he went out there today in a competitive situation and really stepped up,” head coach Joe Judge said. “He has good command situationally. He knows how to use some of the variety of calls and checks within our offense. I thought he really showed up a lot at the end of the scrimmage. That no-huddle situation we had right there, I was very pleased to see how he commanded the entire team and kept everyone moving through the situation.”

Truth be told, Jones has really only logged two bad passes this camp (from what the media has been able to see). Other than that, he’s been quietly solid all-around.

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Graham Gano was automatic

Graham Gano told reporters earlier this week that he was completely healthy and ready to make a dent for the Giants’ special teams unit, and if Friday’s performance was any indication, he’s not kidding.

Gano was easily the Giants’ best and most consistent player during the scrimmage, going 6-of-6 on his field goal attempts, including one from beyond 50 yards.

The veteran kicker also connected on all of his point after attempts.

“It’s been very smooth. Riley (Dixon) and Casey (Kreiter) have been very good with the operation. It’s been really surprising how quickly we have picked it up,” Gano told reporters on Thursday. “It was nice to be behind a line of scrimmage again. It’s fun, this is what I enjoy doing. It’s nice to be back playing football again.”

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Dexter Lawrence is an animal

Dexter Lawrence enters his second season with a revamped body and mind, having focused on his overall health and well-being this offseason.

It showed during Friday’s scrimmage as Lawrence appeared to win almost every snap. He was stuffing running lanes, obstructing the quarterback’s vision at the line of scrimmage and sniffing out screens.

In fact, Lawrence had one of the day’s highlights when he tracked running back Saquon Barkley down from behind and ended a would-be big gain.

Even Barkley had to give Lawrence his due after that play.

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David Sills can be trusted

The Giants need a tall wide receiver to step up and earn a roster spot, and that receiver might be the 6-foot-3 David Sills.

Sills has had a solid camp this year and that continued during Friday’s scrimmage when he hauled in one of Daniel Jones’ two touchdowns passes (Kaden Smith the other).

“Look, this guy busts his butt every day he comes out. He’s shown up a lot for us already on offense. He shows up [on special teams],” Judge said of Sills. “I’m very pleased with how David comes out every day and works. It’s no surprise he’s making plays and being productive.”

The highest praise of Sills came courtesy of Daniel Jones.

“I think he is a guy out there you can trust, a guy in the right spot a lot of the time and can get open and make plays. He’s a good player and he’s had a good camp so far,” Jones said.

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Darnay Holmes is the real deal

Head coach Joe Judge previously said that rookie cornerback Darnay Holmes doesn’t back down from any challenge, and that was evident on Friday.

Next to Dexter Lawrence, Holmes had one of the highlight moments of the scrimmage, diving to bring down an interception off the arm of Daniel Jones and then having the awareness to get up and bring the ball back the other way.

Fellow rookie Andrew Thomas did manage to force a fumble on Holmes’ return, but don’t let that overshadow the athletic play.

“He’s a real competitive guy that comes to work every day with a full head of steam. He’s very attentive. I’m not surprised to see him improve day by day. I was pleased with the way he played today,” Judge said. “I was pleased with the way he came out and competed today.

“You want your defense to be ball hawks and flying around all the time.”

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Defense treated it like a real game

Although Friday was nothing more than a scrimmage, there’s a reason why the defense got out to an early lead over the offense: they treated it like a real game.

The Giants defense had a meeting on Thursday night and the entire unit went into regular season mode. They set a schedule as they would during a normal week, ate like a normal week, prepared like a normal week and even went through their pregame rituals like it was a normal week.

“I think we kind of set the tone [Thursday] night even to ‘let’s all prepare, come in today like it’s a game.’ We’re not getting those preseason game reps, so we tried to really take it seriously today and try to get out there, play with high energy, high focus and just play with each other. We wanted to fly around, run to the ball, and for the most part, I thought we did a good job today. That was kind of our mindset. It’s all trying to get those game-like reps going for us,” defensive back Julian Love said.

Mission accomplished.

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Tae Crowder is fast

Tae Crowder, the Giants’ seventh-round pick, flashed repeatedly on Friday, showing good anticipating and noticeable speed.

Specifically, Crowder shot in like a bolt of lightning on a second-and-short run, bringing running back Wayne Gallman down for a loss and forcing a third-down.

Crowder’s persistence got under the skin of several offensive players, including center Spencer Pulley, who exchanged a few shoves with the rookie at one point.

While he did draw a flag on the day, Crowder will stand out when Joe Judge goes back and watches the tape.

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Nick Gates solid at center

Daniel Jones and Spencer Pulley were forced to run a penalty lap earlier this week after a botched snap, which only further opens the door for Swiss Army Knife Nick Gates.

On Friday, Gates was barely noticed — and that’s a good thing for any offensive lineman. He looks comfortable at center and Daniel Jones had nothing but good things to say.

“Gates is someone who we have worked with a lot and I have enjoyed working with. I think he has done a good job,” Jones said. “It’s been good and I have enjoyed working with him.”

The Giants seemed to move the ball well with Gates in at center and the only thing that stopped them was the aforementioned Dexter Lawrence bringing Saquon Barkley down on a running back screen.

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Giants look deep at running back

Saquon Barkley and Dion Lewis are obviously talented backs at the top of the Giants’ depth chart, but even behind them, there’s a little something brewing.

Wayne Gallman has looked solid in camp and rookie Javone Leake is beginning to flash.

In particular, Leake looked like a legitimate weapon during Friday’s scrimmage. He broke off a big run, caught a few passes and showed off his impressive quickness.

“He’s a guy who’s really coming on right now. He’s feeling more comfortable within the system and scheme. He’s doing a good job of taking coaching points from Burton (Burns) to the field. He’s a guy that’s very in-tune at meetings, paying attention. You can see that with him. He’s improved on a daily basis,” Judge said of Leake.