Which players stood out at NY Giants rookie camp? What we saw from Malik Nabers and others
EAST RUTHERFORD - Casey Rogers knew he was being watched.
Not that he noticed Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen right away, but being the son of a coach, the undrafted defensive tackle from Oregon carried himself as if he was the one who would be commanding all the attention during the team's two-day rookie camp this past weekend.
"At this level, you have to understand that all eyes are on you, on and off the field, and do everything you do with that mentality," Rogers told NorthJersey.com after practice Saturday.
That's why, when a teammate knocked a tackling dummy out of place during a given drill, Rogers jumped out of line and put it back where it belonged, aiding defensive line coach Andre Patterson and allowing the exercise to continue without delay.
He did so three different times and without hesitation, acting on instinct, not assignment, and his actions made for a perfect statement about his presence with the Giants.
"I'm the son of a coach, I have a pretty good idea of what runs through their minds, what they expect of players," Rogers said. "Any way I can help, and if that's moving a bag, so be it. There's really no room for errors. The standard has to be perfection. I'm going to be a sponge, take it all in and be the best player I can be."
Rogers would seem to fit with the Giants as a three-technique with pass rush ability in sub packages. He's extremely athletic and moves well, just as you would expect a former lacrosse player to glide through drills.
The Syracuse native has tools Patterson and assistant defensive line coach Bryan Cox can work with, as does Elijah Chatman, the undrafted rookie from SMU who earned a contract after working this weekend as a tryout. The 6-foot, 278-pound Chatman bench pressed 495 pounds this offseason with 42 reps at 225. His game is about motor, instincts and hands, and Patterson has stated in the past that he does not concern himself with height at the position if the technique is there.
Heck, he coached 6-foot-1 John Randle on the road to the Hall of Fame in Minnesota.
So keep an eye on Rogers and Chatman as two rookies who could fight their way into our conversation this summer.
Malik Nabers, smooth operator
The one word that comes to mind while watching rookie Malik Nabers in position drills: smooth.
For someone whose game is so explosive, the calm with which he appears to play in this setting is impressive.
Nabers is wearing No. 9, which currently belongs to Graham Gano. He wore No. 8 at LSU, which of course is worn by Daniel Jones. Nabers will likely end up with different digits by the time the season begins, but for now, he joked that he'll give this a spin and see how things work out.
Gano had worn No. 5, but gave that up to Kayvon Thibodeaux when the two negotiated a charitable donation.
"I think this is just a temporary number to put me into something for right now," Nabers said. "I hope it looks great. I'll see it on film to see if I really want to keep it or not."
Tyrone Tracy Jr.: Standing out in the backfield
Had Tyrone Tracy Jr. stayed at wide receiver, he likely would not be in the NFL right now, and he knows it. That's how important the fifth-round pick considers his move to running back.
"At receiver, I might have been an average speed receiver, average size receiver," Tracy said. "At running back, I'm a fast running back, I’m a big running back. I’m a running back who can catch the ball out of the backfield. So, yeah, when you look at how God placed every single thing and allowed my situation to kind of align up, switching to running back from receiver was actually the missing piece to the puzzle."
Tryouts get their shot
The Giants went through two days of practices in their rookie camp with 7-on-7 being their only team competitive periods. Who participated? All tryouts, and they ran somewhat basic plays during those periods.
Tryouts did not get the playbook.
Benefits: players looking to make an impression can do that with opportunities. Also, draft picks and UDFA signings already on the team were not subject to risk of going up against tryouts.
Turbo boost
Dante "Turbo" Miller showed off his speed and explosiveness on punt return. He's technically a rookie UDFA and participating here this weekend, a chance for him to take another step forward in trying to be a part of this team.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NY Giants rookie camp impressions of Malik Nabers and others
