Giants’ linemen excited about switch to 3-4
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. » Damon Harrison isn’t a big fan of change, so it might be a little surprising the massive defensive tackle is enjoying playing in the New York Giants’ new 3-4 scheme.
Harrison is having fun playing in the middle of the line flanked by secondyear pro Dalvin Tomlinson and third-round draft pick B.J. Hill.
While there are fewer linemen in the formation, players say the defense is much more aggressive than the old 4-3 scheme. The linemen have gone from playing a two-gap responsibility to attacking one-gap.
“It just takes me back to my first years in the league,” the 29-year-old Harrison said Wednesday before practice. “It’s kind of like a Rex Ryan-type defense. It’s a lot of attacking, it’s not sitting around waiting, trying to read and see the other guys on the offense are doing — it’s playing defense with an offensive mentality.”
In the formation, Harrison tends to shade on either side of the center, while Tomlinson and Hill pick a gap between the guard and tackle.
What also makes James Bettcher’s defense interesting is the linemen also can rotate, so are not going up against the same opponent each play.
When the linebackers and defensive backs join the rush, it adds to the confusion.
While the Giants (3-13) struggled last season, Harrison was again outstanding. He has started every game for five straights seasons, including the last two with the Giants. He finished with 76 tackles, second on the team, and he is clearly one of the leaders on defense, even though he shies away from calling himself a leader.
Besides learning a new defense, Harrison said he is learning about a new coaching staff and a lot of new players, led by linebackers Kareem Martin, Alec Ogletree and Connor Barwin along with Hill and veteran tackle A.J. Francis.
“It’s a few holdovers, but other than that, it’s new faces,” said Harrison, who is entering his seventh season after starting with the Jets. “Everybody’s trying to learn everybody, to figure out what makes that person tick, what makes them go.”