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The New York Giants have always prided themselves on their offensive line. That has waned a bit over the past decade but it appears to be making a comeback with players such as guard Shane Lemieux.
Lemieux was a fifth-round pick out of Oregon in last year’s NFL draft and the Giants’ brass likened him to Rich Seubert from their most recent championships teams.
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Pundits and observers have had mixed reviews about Lemieux thus far. Some see him as an ascending player while others are taking the ‘wait-and-see’ approach claiming the Giants are seeing something in him that might not be there.
One thing that can’t be denied is Lemieux’s drive and passion for the game. His talent might be still need to be proven but there’s no doubt he’s a gamer.
“Forget what the grading services say, this kid has an inner fiber that burns hot and there’s a lot of nasty to his game,” NFL Network analyst Brian Baldinger said. “The Giants found their guard! Look for Lemieux to really impact the run game in Saquon Barkley’s return and protect Daniel Jones in a big year for the quarterback.”
When training camp began, Lemieux was slotted in at left guard, the position he played in the second half of last season after taking over for Will Hernandez, who was placed on the COVID-19 list.
Then, in the opening days of camp, Lemieux was carted off with a knee injury, which now appears to be on the minor side. He is back working at practice, but is being held back for safety purposes.
“He’s kind of like a wild animal,” said head coach Joe Judge. “He’d chew his leg off to get through a bear trap if he had to, so him not being out there is kind of driving him nuts.”
“I like to practice,” said Lemieux. “I like to work. I want to get better every single day and I’m just taking it a day at a time.”
The Giants are hoping their second-year guard can anchor the line someday like Seubert and Chris Snee did a decade ago. Ideally, the Giants would love to see all five of their young linemen — Lemieux, Hernandez, center Nick Gates and tackles Andrew Thomas and Matt Peart — gel into the type of unit that brought them two Lombardi Trophies.
“It’s an opportunity where we have five really young guys that can all work together,” Lemieux said. “Hopefully, we’re all Giants for a long time together. That would be awesome. But speaking now, we know the pressure, everyone thinks we’re a young O-Line. We can’t listen to the outside noise. We have to just continue to get better. We’re all about the same age; it’s kind of a cool aspect where we’re all friends. It’s not like there’s the older guy, who doesn’t hang out with the younger guys. We all hang out together, so it’s a cool relationship.”
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