Practice Report (8/11): View from the sideline

The Giants were back on the practice field for the first time since their preseason victory against Detroit on Thursday night. They practiced in shells today before consecutive padded practices on Monday and Tuesday. They will be off Wednesday before one more practice on Thursday. The team will to Houston on Friday and face the Texans on Saturday afternoon. Temperatures today were in the upper 70s and low 80s with bright and intense sunny skies for most of practice.

* The Giants welcomed several players back to practice today, including tackle Evan Neal (ankle) and John Michael Schmitz (shoulder). Tight ends Lawrence Cager (hamstring) and Jack Stoll (concussion) were also back. They will ramp up after a period of inactivity, with Neal and Schmitz moved well and looked healthy during individual drills.

* There were four competitive periods over the course of practice. With Drew Lock sitting out after getting banged up against the Lions,, Daniel Jones and Tommy DeVito took all the snaps at quarterback.

* The defense had the advantage for most of the day, but the offense did make a couple of big plays down the field. On a play action pass, Jones rolled slightly to his right before throwing a perfectly placed ball across the field to Malik Nabers, who had gotten behind a pair of Giants defenders. It reached him in-stride right over his shoulder a couple steps before the backline of the endzone. The ball probably traveled 50 yards in the air and was right on the money.

* Later in practice, Jones would find Jalin Hyatt on a deep pass down the left sideline for what would have been a touchdown. Hyatt used his speed to get behind the defender and Jones put it out in front of him for the score. There is a question as to whether Jones would have gotten the pass off if the pass rush was live, with Dexter Lawrence penetrating into the backfield.

* During red zone drills, Tommy DeVito threw a pair of touchdown passes, finding tight ends Lawrence Cager and Tyree Jackson for scores. The defense got the best of the red zone drills, with Breon Borders knocking away a pass intended for Theo Johnson. Dane Belton forced an incompletion covering Johnson on an out route. Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeau and Matthew Adams got into the backfield for either pressures or sacks during the period.

* The next team period took was in the fringe just outside the red zone. Bobby Okereke knocked the ball away on a slant over the middle. Azeez Ojulari dropped into coverage and got his hands on a pass intended for Tyrone Tracy Jr. Benton Whitley got past the offensive line for a potential sack during the drill.

* In the following team period, Kayvon Thibodeau came screaming into the backfield for a potential sack coming off the weak side on a play action pass. Ojulari worked himself into position to stop a screen pass near the line of scrimmage. Darius Muasau got into the backfield on a blitz, forcing DeVito to tuck the ball and run.

* In the final team period, Jason Pinnock started things strong for the defense with a leaping interception in the middle of the field. Burns had a would-be sack, while Nick McCloud knocked a ball down intended for Isaiah Hodgins. Hodgins would make a sliding catch later in the period.