Rainey day could be in forecast
WHILE Giants coach Ben McAdoo said Sunday that “frustration doesn’t solve anything,” he said he shares in Odell Beckham Jr.’s visible disgust on the field Saturday night with Big Blue’s offensive performance.
“No one is happy with the way the first offense operated,” McAdoo said in a conference call when asked about Beckham’s second-quarter antics, when the wide receiver yelled back toward the huddle and gestured, looking agitated, after receiving no targets in the Giants’ first 16 offensive plays.
“We need to improve, we need to make sure we are going forward so (that) we give guys opportunities to showcase their abilities. But frustration doesn’t solve anything,” the coach added. “At the same point in time, we need to improve, we need to execute better and we need to play forward. We can’t be going backwards.”
McAdoo also said he felt the Jets’ coverage threw off Beckham on the following drive, when the Giants receiver pulled up short of an eventual Eli Manning interception as Calvin Pryor approached for a big hit. “I think the coverage surprised him,” McAdoo said. “It was a post safety defense and the post safety was low and didn’t get much depth, so when the ball was on him and the safety was on him at the same time, I think he was surprised by the safety more than anything.”
The first-year head coach knows the offensive line’s play has been unacceptable. Sunday McAdoo even said: “I’m expecting a lot of questions about the offensive line.” But he added that the offense’s ineptitude is
LOOK, the odds aren’t in Bobby Rainey’s favor to make the Giants’ roster.
The fifth-year vet entered training camp low on a running back depth chart already including Rashad Jennings, Shane Vereen, Andre Williams, Orleans Darkwa, rookie fifth-round pick Paul Perkins and undrafted rookie Marshaun Coprich.
Rainey’s best chance to make the team, as a kick and punt returner, is also an uphill climb since Dwayne Harris is the Giants’ alpha dog on special teams, in year two of a five-year, $17.5 million deal.
Still, with the Giants offense generating almost nothing through three preseason games and few playmakers wowing the coaching staff with the ball in their hands, Rainey suddenly has been one of the refreshing exceptions who could be turning head coach Ben McAdoo’s head.
“Absolutely he’s a guy that can make the team,” McAdoo said of Rainey during a conference call on Sunday afternoon. “He does contribute as a returner, both kick return and punt return. He does a nice job with that role. And he’s a guy that provides some nice versatility out of the backfield.”
While Rainey didn’t have a rush attempt in Saturday night’s 21-20 win over the Jets, he broke off a punt return of 21 yards and took two kickoffs back for a total of 48 yards, with a high of 29, showing a rare burst among Giants this August.
“I’ve been consistent the last two games,” Rainey, 28, said Saturday night. “Yeah, I think it’s been consistent from the last game gaining good yards and this game, making good decisions, as well.”
Last season, Rainey finished seventh in the NFL in kick and punt return yards (757), with Harris (972 yards) “more than just the offensive line.”
He also insisted “everything with the offensive line is correctable” and said, “I feel very confident that we are going to get the offensive line going in the right direction.”
WAITING GAME
McAdoo said Saturday night’s X-rays on Giants outside linebacker Jonathan Casillas’ ribs were inconclusive, so Casillas was being re-evaluated Sunday. The coach said free-agent signing Keenan Robinson (three tackles) “flashed admirably” and “played hard” in Casillas’ stead, but losing Casillas would be a major blow. He has been one of the Giants’ best players all preseason … Fullback Nikita Whitlock has a mid-foot sprain.
TIGHTENING UP
McAdoo is not pleased with his tight ends’ blocking, including second-year Stony Brook product Will Tye.
“We need to find some guys who can block better for us,” McAdoo said.
Tye caught 42 passes for 464 yards and three TDs as a rookie, but coaches have hounded him about his pad level on blocks and he still isn’t employing the best fundamentals nor staying disciplined.
“He had a couple penalties yesterday. We expect Will to play better,” McAdoo said. “He’s still a young player. He’s still a player that’s going to develop. We have faith that he’ll do that, but he needs to play better.”
Larry Donnell has looked OK after missing half of last season with a broken bone in his neck. But two tight ends now are injured: Second-year undrafted TE Matt LaCosse reportedly needs surgery on his right knee, and Will Johnson (burner) has missed the last two games. ranked fourth. Rainey is a hard worker, undrafted out of Western Kentucky signed first by Baltimore in 2012, who won a Super Bowl that year with the Ravens as a practice squad player.
Rainey started this preseason with the Giants poorly, dropping a sure touchdown on a wheel route in an early practice and fumbling twice in the opener against Miami. But he rebounded for his high point in Week 2 in Buffalo, a 67-yard, fourth-quarter dash from the Giants’ 3-yard line after making several Bills miss at a crowded line of scrimmage.
The next step for the undersized Rainey (5-8, 212 pounds) may be to excel at blocking in this week’s fourth and final preseason game against the New England Patriots on Thursday. Vereen missed an assignment Saturday that allowed Jets safety Calvin Pryor to crush Eli Manning untouched on a blitz.
Darkwa, who has done very little this preseason, badly whiffed before Jets linebacker Bruce Carter blocked a Giants first quarter punt.