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The New York Giants fell to the Detroit Lions, 21-16, on Friday night in their preseason opener and here are 7 quick takeaways.
The New York Giants opened their 2023 NFL preseason schedule with a 21-16 loss to the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on Friday night.
Here are seven quick takeaways from the game.
The New York Giants fell to the Lions, 21-16, on Friday and here’s a look at our winners and losers (and those in between) from the game.
Editor’s note: Upon reviewing the game, we changed the entry for Deonte Banks, adding detail on what was a bang-bang play and difficult to read in real-time. Giants Wire writers disagreed (and still disagree) on what transpired.
The New York Giants opened the 2023 preseason on Friday night against the Detroit Lions and neither team played their key starters. There were a few spot starters on both sides but predominantly, the game featured depth players.
Accordingly, it was a rather ugly performance for each team. There was more bad than good, and neither coach is going to be particularly happy on Saturday morning.
Here are some winners, losers, and in-betweens from Fright night’s Giants’ victory/defeat.
The New York Giants have activated Sterling Shepard and Jamison Crowder, and will also welcome three others back to practice on Sunday.
New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll was back in front of the media on Sunday morning after a day off on Saturday and revealed the team would be activating both Sterling Shepard and Jamison Crowder.
Daboll opened the presser by announcing that Shepard (knee) will be coming off the PUP list on Sunday and will be participating in drills. It will be his first time back on the filed since tearing his ACL last September.
Daboll also said they are activating 2023 free-agent signing, Crowder (calf), off the non-football injury list. He will also take part in practice.
Among other injury updates, defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who was involved in a car accident last week that landed him in the concussion protocol, will also be back to practice on Sunday.
Giants are activating wide receivers Sterling Shepard & Jamison Crowder off the PUP list today, Brian Daboll says
Cole Beasley (quad), Rakeem Nunez-Roches (concussion) & Gervarrius Owens are all practicing, too
DE Jihad Ward (undisclosed ailment) & TE Ryan Jones sitting today pic.twitter.com/4GWrw5JBqi
— Pat Leonard (@PLeonardNYDN) July 30, 2023
The same will be the case for veteran wide receiver Cole Beasley (quad) and rookie defensive back Gervarrius Owens.
Linebacker Jihad Ward (undisclosed ailment) and backup tight end Ryan Jones (undisclosed) will sit out Sunday’s drills.
The first week of practice has many wondering if the team’s first-round pick, cornerback Deonte Banks out of Maryland, is ready to step right in and start this season. Daboll didn’t say either way but had some positive feed back on Banks.
#NYGiants Daboll – banks done a good job….competing hard and showing shadow skills in coverage
— GiantsWFAN (@giantswfan) July 30, 2023
The Giants traded up one spot in the first round in this year’s draft to select Banks, who they see as a physical player who can man-up with the bigger outside receivers in the league.
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The New York Giants will bring at least 15 wide receivers into training camp and half of those won’t make the 53-man roster.
The New York Giants will be taking 15 wide receivers to training camp this week, leading to the question — what is the plan?
Are they just throwing options against the wall to see what sticks? Or are they simply creating competition to see who will rise, or are they safeguarding themselves in case of a repeat of last year when they suffered an unusually high number of injuries?
It could be a little of both. The team found themselves shorthanded last season and they don’t want to get caught short again.
The unit will be run again by assistant coach Mike Groh and he will have a diverse group of players of all shapes, sizes and skill sets who possess a varied level of NFL experience.
Of the 15 players, perhaps eight of them will make the team’s final 53-man roster, and — if things go right — one or two of them could end up leading the team in targets and/or catches.
But that will be difficult. The Giants’ big move this offseason on offense was the trade for former Pro Bowl tight end Darren Waller. He is expected to be heavily involved in the passing game.
So is running back Saquon Barkley, when he returns from his ‘holdout.’ Barkley has been the Giants’ best receiver when healthy the past few years and there’s no reason to stop throwing him the football. Between he and Waller, there will be fewer opportunities for the wideouts, unless something changes.
So, what should fans expect this summer at wide receiver?
Expect the veterans to get the benefit of the doubt, at least in the beginning. That means initial work for Sterling Shepard, who is returning from another lost season due to injury, and Darius Slayton. Toss in Isaiah Hodgins and Wan’Dale Robinson (when he’s ready), along with free agents Parris Campbell, Jamison Crowder, Jeff Smith, Cole Beasley, and rookie Jalin Hyatt.
The Giants will try to forge a serviceable unit out of those names. They are top-heavy on slot receivers it seems so they might thin the herd there in favor of some outside options.
The others will all have to have monster camps to even be considered. Collin Johnson, David Sills and rookie Bryce Ford-Wheaton are interesting names to watch but where do they fit? Jaydon Mickens, Makai Polk and Kalil Pimpleton are long shots and will have to show special teams prowess to stick.
Wide receiver will be a heavily contested unit this summer and will be a fun one to follow.
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The New York Giants have signed Cole Beasley so here are five things to know about their newest wide receiver.
On Friday, the New York Giants signed veteran wide receiver Cole Beasley.
The signing reunites Beasley with Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen, whom he played for with the Buffalo Bills. That Beasley is familiar with the front office is a bonus, and it’s a bonus that he’s an 11-year veteran who can impart some knowledge on the younger players.
Beasley adds continued depth to a wide receiving corps that was depleted last year; a corps that will likely be down a couple of players who will still be recovering from injury when the season begins.
With Beasley on board now, here are five things to know about the newly inked Giant.
The Giants added a couple of veterans in Cole Beasley and James Robinson
Busy Friday for Big Blue.
The New York Giants signed veteran WR Cole Beasley, and then added RB James Robinson to the fold.
We have signed RB James Robinson pic.twitter.com/GI7NqQVWfN
— New York Giants (@Giants) July 21, 2023
Beasley has ties to the Buffalo Bills and there are many in the Giants’ organization who were associated with the AFC East team. Count head coach Brian Daboll among them, who is definitely familiar with Beasley.
Robinson has bounced around since having a great rookie season as an undrafted free agent with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Robinson played for the Jaguars and New York Jets last season
He agreed to a two-year deal with the New England Patriots in March but was released after the first day of a minicamp in June.
Robinson could come into play in a big way if running back Saquon Barkley decides to hold out after he could not come to a long-term agreement with the Giants earlier in the week.
Beasley faces the #Bills in 2023:
Cole Beasley is back on a NFL team with Buffalo Bills connections… but it’s not the Bills.
The New York Giants have announced that Beasley is the latest of several former Buffalo players to have joined Brian Daboll’s roster. Daboll was previously the offensive coordinator of the Bills.
Current Giants players with previous Bills connections include:
After Buffalo selected tight end Dalton Kincaid at the 2023 NFL draft, the 34-year-old signaled on social media he felt that his time in western New York was over. That appears to be true.
In a recent conversation with Outkick, Beasley said he felt like he was treated differently in Buffalo once he became outspoken during the COVID-19 pandemic. In that same interview, he indicated he never had any ill treatment thrown his way by teammates in the Bills locker room. Beasley was even working out this offseason with Gabe Davis and Matt Milano in Florida, he revealed.
Beasley re-signed in Buffalo in the midst of last season but he failed to make an impact. His first stint with the Bills was extremely positive but he was released amid his anti-vaccination status toward COVID-19 pandemic, plus, cutting him saved the team salary cap space.
All that considered, the Bills’ Week 6 matchup against the New York Giants in Orchard Park now gets another storyline added to it: Beasley’s return.
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The New York Giants have signed veteran WR Cole Beasley, reuniting him with GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll.
The New York Giants held a series of workouts on Friday and among those in East Rutherford was veteran wide receiver Cole Beasley. And as it turns out, he won’t be leaving town.
The Giants announced they have signed Beasley ahead of training camp, adding them to their horde of receivers.
With the Giants, Beasley will reunite with general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll. This comes after the duo attempted to sign Beasley last season.
The 34-year-old Beasley was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted rookie free agent out of SMU in 2012. After seven seasons in Arlington, he joined the Bills in 2019 and spent three seasons there before splitting time between Buffalo and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season.
In 153 career games (51 starts), Beasley has hauled in 556 receptions for 5,744 yards and 34 touchdowns, adding seven yards on the ground, 19 yards on kick returns, and 220 yards as a punt returner. He earned a 62.2 Pro Football Focus grade in 2022 with his career-best coming in 2016 (87.2).
Beasley did earn a PFF grade of 84.9 just two years ago.
With the Giants, Beasley joins a deep slot group that also consists of Parris Campbell, Sterling Shepard, Wan’Dale Robinson, and Jamison Crowder. However, it’s possible that both Shepard (ACL) and Robinson (ACL) start the season on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.
In addition to Beasley, the Giants also hosted linebackers Nick Vigil and Sam Eguavoen, defensive linemen Brandin Bryant and R.J. McIntosh, cornerback Nevelle Clarke, quarterback Jake Luton, and wide receivers Justin Marshall and Milton Wright for workouts.
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#Bills’ Matt Milano, Gabe Davis working out with Cole Beasley:
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Two Buffalo Bills players are linking up with a former teammate in Florida for some offseason workouts.
According to OutKick, linebacker Matt Milano and receiver Gabe Davis are putting in some summer workouts with Cole Beasley.
Beasley, 34, is currently a free agent. He played for the Bills in 2023, however, his return to Buffalo was lackluster.
He was previously released by the team which saved the Bills salary cap space, however, he was also a vocal anti-vaccination advocate during the COVID-19 pandemic. That decision to release Beasley likely was related to that as it proved to be a team distraction.
Beasley was outspoken on social media about the rules put in place by the NFL during the pandemic. He said to OutKick his relationship with the city of Buffalo “changed” after that.
Beasley also revealed that he has not yet retired from the NFL. He said he has a workout with a NFL team on July 21 but did not reveal which club.
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Cole Beasley sets deadline for retirement decision, adds he doesn’t think he’ll be back with #Bills:
It appears Cole Beasley has set a timeline regarding his NFL future.
At the end of the 2022 season, Beasley indicated he was open to returning to the Buffalo Bills in 2023. The 34-year-old signed with the team once again mid-season.
Beasley did not make the biggest of impacts and that’s a bit of the reason why he has set the deadline he has.
Writing via social media post on Twitter, Beasley said he wants to join a team but only will if he’s signed before or during training camp. He cited the desire to wanting to build on chemistry prior to the season as a reason why:
If I’m not in a Training Camp I’m retiring. Coming in when the season has already started doesn’t give me a chance to be implemented and make an impact. I need camp to develop chemistry with everyone and build confidence. If they won’t give me that then they don’t want me there. https://t.co/Pvv9T8iBLI
— Cole Beasley (@Bease11) April 29, 2023
In a separate message, Beasley indicated if he was to come back for the 2023 season, he personally does not believe it will be in Buffalo. The reason why just came and went: the 2023 NFL draft.
Tight end Dalton Kincaid is not a receiver, but he does make plays out of the slot like Beasley once did for the Bills.
In a separate post on Twitter, Beasley wrote:
“I think them drafting that TE in the first round put an end to that man. He’s gonna be on the field. It was fun while it lasted though.”
Prior to re-signing with the Bills during last season, Beasley had a short spell with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In March 2022, Beasley’s first stint in Buffalo ended. He was granted permission to seek a trade after off-field headlines followed Beasley during the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Bills ended up outright releasing him.
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