Webb gets more reps, still might not play
Davis Webb appears closer than ever to finally taking the field, but the rookie quarterback’s debut could still be far in the future.
Though Webb took firstteam reps for the second straight practice, Steve Spagnuolo said Thursday he isn’t sure whether the rookie will be able to get enough work in before the Giants’ Dec. 31 season finale for the interim coach to feel comfortable giving Webb game action.
Webb received six of the eight snaps during the team’s competition period, split between red-zone and third-down reps.
“We’ll find out as we go,” Spagnuolo said. “It’s a dayto-day thing. ... The last thing you want to do is put somebody in a game when they haven’t had enough work. I don’t think that would be fair either. ... That’s why we began this process right now to find out.
“I think all that stuff will work itself out and we have to decide, too, if doing anything actually gives you what you want to know. A quarterback goes out there and gets a false sense of what he can and can’t do. I don’t know if that would be fair either. So, we’re assessing all of it.”
Spagnuolo said he hasn’t had any conversations with owner John Mara or interim general manager Kevin Abrams about the situation, and the interim coach acknowledged it has been difficult for him to balance each week’s gameplan, with giving Webb extra work.
When asked why the team’s third-round pick hadn’t received similar opportunities before this week, Spagnuolo claimed Webb got lost in the shuffle, amidst the firings of Ben McAdoo and Jerry Reese, and Eli Manning’s benching.
“Really, everybody understands what we went through,” Spagnuolo said. “So, the first week, just fo- cus on gathering up. There was a lot going on. Let’s get the quarterback in there that’s going to play. Let’s get him all the reps. ... It was something either I hadn’t thought about or we hadn’t talked about and we didn’t do it. So, we got to this week and decided to do it.”
Despite heavily lobbying on social media for a spot in the Pro Bowl over the past month, Damon Harrison claims he isn’t bothered with being left off the roster again.
After being named to the All-Pro team last season, but not named to the Pro Bowl, the renowned runstuffer was named a fourth alternate to the game this season, having led all NFC defensive linemen with 66 tackles.
Though his numerous tweets demonstrate how much a selection would have meant to Harrison, the 29-year-old couldn’t find issue with being passed over in favor of the Rams’ Aaron Donald, the Eagles’ Fletcher Cox and the Bucs’ Gerald McCoy.
“I can’t get mad and say to pull any of those guys out so I can go in their spots,” Harrison said. “They deserved it.”
With only 1.5 sacks this season, Harrison believes his lack of snaps on third down probably killed his candidacy.
“I think if I played more on third down possibly, but the scheme is not fit for me to be in on third down and it’s not what they ask me to do, so I just try to excel on first and second down and whatever third-down opportunities I get,” Harrison said. “Hopefully I’ll get the All-Pro nod this year, but if not it’s business as usual. … At the end of the day, we all want to be recognized for what we do.”
Jason Pierre-Paul hasn’t played a full season since his infamous July 4 fireworks accident in 2015. His damaged right hand could play a part in preventing him from doing so again.
Pierre-Paul (finger) missed his second straight practice Thursday, and interim coach Steve Spagnuolo said he has a “little bit” of concern about the defensive end’s status for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals. Spagnuolo had said the previous day that he expected Pierre-Paul to return to practice Thursday.
“He’s got some bumps and bruises,” Spagnuolo said. “We’re trying to be smart with him.” Safety Landon Collins (ankle) also did not practice for the second straight day, along with linebacker B.J. Goodson (ankle) and wide receiver Tavarres King (concussion). Tackle Ereck Flowers (groin) was limited, and a new addition to the injury report.