Sprinting toward greatness: Next stop in Kayvon Thibodeaux's Giants journey a big one

ALLEN PARK, Mich. - The horn sounded to end Saturday night's training camp practice for the New York Giants and without hesitation Kayvon Thibodeaux hustled over to the end zone.

The fans cheered, in the stands for the final time for summer sessions at 1925 Giants Drive in New Jersey.

His teammates assembled in their post-practice stretch lines, ready to take instruction from strength and conditioning coach Craig Fitzgerald.

Thibodeaux would join them, but not before his own work was done. He lined up on the right side of the end zone and sprinted to the other end, then back again, numerous times over. This wasn't punishment, mind you, just another part of Thibodeaux's calculated plan to get to where he wants to go this season.

That's exactly where the Giants are counting on Thibodeaux to take his game in Year 2:

To the top.

"When I came to the league, we run so much that you think you're going to be prepared, but nothing can prepare you for what's to come on Sunday," Thibodeaux said. "I'm just trying to give myself every advantage to be better. I played a lot of snaps last year, and I feel like if I was more prepared for the number of snaps I was going to play, I could have had more production. So, I'm just trying to give myself any advantage I can."

Thibodeaux has been somewhat of a grinder as a professional, learning what works at this level in terms of converting pressures into sacks. The quest has not changed: develop into the player the Giants believed he could be and change the way this defense is viewed.

That’s how influential team brass expects the No. 5 overall pick to become.

With the Giants set to hit the practice fields here for a pair of joint practices with the Lions in advance of Friday's preseason opener between the two teams at Ford Field, Thibodeaux will certainly find himself in the spotlight.

In an alternate NFL universe, perhaps Thibodeaux would be with the Lions instead of Aidan Hutchinson, who was selected second overall by Detroit two years ago. Thibodeaux went to the Giants three slots later, and there was interest in both players with the Giants and the Lions - they actually visited Big Blue on the same day for pre-draft interviews in April 2022.

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"You’ve got [Thibodeaux] and Hutchinson in the same room, in the same draft, and one of those guys is going to be available," Giants legend Carl Banks told NorthJersey.com at the time. "And I said this [to Giants brass]: Both him and Hutchinson will have impacts with their team. But one guy will change the game for you, and one guy will be consistently good. When you need a play, Kayvon Thibodeaux’s gonna be the guy.”

Hutchinson had a very good rookie season and was one of the finalists for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, which went to Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner. Thibodeaux delivered splash plays, for sure, but insists there were countless plays he failed to make that leave him with a "cringe feeling" that has provided even more motivation.

Thibodeaux has had his battles over the first two weeks of camp with standout left tackle Andrew Thomas, one of the best in the NFL. The Lions boast a pair of talented tackles in Taylor Decker and Penei Sewell, so it was interesting to see how Thibodeaux measured up.

There was solid play in Day 1 from the Giants' 22-year-old against the Lions, but Hutchinson made some noise, especially in 1-on-1 drills.

Thibodeaux took over in Day 2, however, forcing a fumble in a goal line drill and then recovering that one. He also recovered another fumble later in practice, and consistently complemented Azeez Ojulari, Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams as the pass rush overwhelmed the Lions' O-line for much of the session.

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"It’s so funny when you talk about what you've done," Thibodeaux said. "You ever hear [NBA superstar] Giannis Antetokounmpo’s speech? I think it was in the playoffs; he talked about the past and what you did, and the future and what you're going to do, and humility is in the moment. For me, I mean, I didn't reach the goals that I wanted to reach last year, but we did well as a team. I gave myself a platform to continue to grow, and in the offseason, I put that work in, and now we're here continuing sharpening iron. I'm excited for what's to come as far as the growth of my game."

Thibodeaux's development was a deep dive of sorts, however, because the Giants viewed his game as much more complete than solely a player who was going to be asked to chase down the quarterback. That would come, but defensive coordinator Wink Martindale saw a chess piece with a rare skillset to affect the game in a variety of ways.

Lawrence has emerged as the centerpiece of the Giants' defense after a breakout season that has put him among the best at his position. Thibodeaux has earned his share of respect as well with the way he has gone about his business.

Thibodeaux's impact will be measured by sacks and pressures outside the organization. He had four sacks - well below the number Thibodeaux had in mind - but also generated 40 pressures in 14 regular season games played. His 11.1 QB pressure rate was tops among all rookies who played at least 500 snaps, per Next Gen Stats.

Thibodeaux has not been bashful about his desire to carry on the legacy of the Giants' pass rush icons that preceded him. Lawrence Taylor. Banks. Michael Strahan. Osi Umenyiora. Justin Tuck. Jason Pierre-Paul.

"The previous generations, you want them to feel like they passed the torch and we're capable of carrying that on," Thibodeaux told NorthJersey.com in January. "I'm me, going to always be me. But this is not just about me, it's us. Dex. Leo [Williams]. Azeez. We want to be special."

Lawrence commands the most attention from opponents, and for good reason.

If Thibodeaux can raise his game this year the way Lawrence did last season, the Giants won't be surprised - and Martindale's going to have a lot of fun giving the opposition plenty of problems..

"I had so many goals [last year] and I had so many numbers and statistics about what I wanted to be," Thibodeaux added. "I just want to be great. I want to help my team win. I want to be a guy who can make plays and make the plays when they count."

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Kayvon Thibodeaux: NY Giants star sprinting to Year 2 greatness