Wheel’s up for a JPP reunion
In his first taste of the NFL last year, Chad Wheeler saw plenty of Jason Pierre-Paul. The rookie offensive tackle, undrafted out of USC, worked at both tackle spots in Giants practices, lining up repeatedly against a bona fide pass-rushing defensive end, day after day. The assessment? “He’s a matchup nightmare,’’ Wheeler told The Post.
That matchup on Sunday falls to Nate Solder, the veteran left tackle from the Patriots acquired in free agency. Pierre-Paul, traded to t he Buccaneers back in March, usually lines up on the right side of the defense, where Solder will be stationed across the line at left tackle. There will be plays when JPP moved across the f ield and lines up across from Wheeler, and he also will come on a stunt and rush from the interior.
No one along the Giants’ offensive line will be spared, as Pierre-Paul goes against the team that selected him in the first round of the 2010 draft.
“He has long arms like most tackles, he bends the corner well and he’s fast and explosive,’’ Wheeler said. “You have to really be on top of your game every snap. You can’t have an error here or there, it has to be perfect to be able to block him. To be able to get so low to the ground for how big he is, it’s unique.’’
Wheeler said he hopes some of the lessons learned in their one year together end up paying off.
“He helped me a lot, showed me some things I’ve never seen before,’’ Wheeler said. “Things I still haven’t seen anyone do it. Just the way, how shifty he is. You don’t really see that in a defensive lineman, he’s big and he can also bend, like he’s a Von Miller type.’’
If JPP drops his 6- foot- 5, 275-pound body on Eli Manning, it will be business, nothing personal. Manning called Pierre-Paul after the trade, a gesture JPP still appreciates.
“With Eli , it’s different because I’ve been there and knowing what he has done, I had the opportunity to actually win a Super Bowl with him and that’s awesome to say that you did that,’’ Pierre-Paul said. “It meant a lot to me, because Eli is a stand-up, world-class guy and no matter what, he’s all about football and he always wants to win. Eli is Eli.’’