Rookie QB Webb to play in first preseason game
EAST RUTHERFORD » Don’t tell Davis Webb that he hasn’t received many chances in practice leading into Friday’s preseason opener against the Steelers.
The rookie, who Giants head coach Ben McAdoo said Wednesday will play under the lights at MetLife Stadium, has a different take on the notion that preparation for his professional debut must be difficult as the No. 4 quarterback in training camp.
“I’ve gotten every rep this entire training camp. I have,” Webb said. “Mentally I’ve been in-tuned, I’ve been asking questions in meetings. I’m watching the play progress, I’m going through my reads back there. I might not be throwing it, but mentally I’m throwing it.”
Watch Webb closely near the other quarterbacks, he says, and you’ll notice his subtle threeand five-step drops. You’ll see him “arm-balling” every single throw by Eli Manning, Geno Smith and Josh Johnson.
What Webb isn’t able to physically rep he makes up for by throwing 50 to 100 footballs every day after practice, specifically the types of passes that were emphasized in meetings earlier that day.
“That’s how it is. That’s the situation I got dealt, and it does not bother me because I’ve gotten every rep this fall camp,” Webb said. “Just looking forward to playing 11-on-11, playing football for the first time in a while and playing for the New York Giants. It’s a dream come true.”
Still, Wednesday marked Webb’s first time playing in an 11-on-11 team period. Running a two-minute drill, Webb picked up one first down with a fourthdown completion to wide receiver Jerome Lane on a curl route near the sideline.
Webb, the Giants’ thirdround pick out of Cal this year, is viewed as the potential successor to Manning down the road.
“He had a few team reps earlier in camp, but he did a nice job,” McAdoo said. “We have a young guy that we have high hopes for in the future, and he’s learning the system. He’s very good at working behind the scenes at getting the work and the reps that he needs to get.”
Webb is expected to be the Giants’ No. 3 quarterback following roster cuts at the end of the preseason, leaving Smith and Johnson to battle for the backup job in the four games before then.
McAdoo said the plan for Friday is “very similar” to the way the Giants treated last season’s preseason opener. So don’t expect to see Manning, wide receiver Odell Beckham and some other top players until the second game Aug. 21 at Cleveland.
That means time is of the essence for Smith and Johnson. For Smith, it’ll be the former Jet’s first game since tearing his ACL last October. He says he feels stronger all-around since rehab and conditioning.
Smith signed with the team in March after starting 30 games in four seasons with New York’s other team. Still, the former second-round pick said he doesn’t feel as though his Giants tenure is chapter two of his NFL career.
“It’s still chapter one,” Smith said. “We’re still working, still getting better. It’s not that kind of thing for me. I’m always focused on football. I don’t look at the outside storylines, any of that. This is a game that I love. I enjoy playing it and I know that the ups and downs, they just come with it.”
McAdoo said film review of Wednesday’s practice would determine which quarterback starts against the Steelers.
The Giants aren’t planning for either to see the field come the regular season. Manning, 36, has started all 211 games for the franchise since becoming the starter in 2004.
McAdoo told The Michael Kay Show on Tuesday that this is Manning’s best camp in the four seasons since McAdoo first joined the Giants as the offensive coordinator in 2014. On Wednesday, he explained why.
“He’s completing the ball at a high percentage,” McAdoo said. “He knows the offense like the back of his hand. He’s been in the offense for four years now, so he’s able to teach others. That’s the best way to learn it and the best way to master it.” there nicely,” McAdoo said. “I see a young, talented player. He’s a physical player. He’s a young player that can bend well. He’s working on the fundamental part of the game.”