NO PLACE LIKE HOME
shepard back familiar slot role
The Giants should put a “Welcome home” sign in the slot Wednesday when the offense lines up for its first snap of training camp.
After unselfishly moving to the outside to make room for Golden Tate over the past two seasons, Sterling Shepard is expected to return to his roots as one of the by-products of the Giants releasing Tate and signing big-bodied free agent Kenny Golladay to play opposite burner Darius Slayton.
“I love the slot,” Shepard said. “It’s where I’m super comfortable. I just like the space that you have. I’m able to go all the way across the field, come back out, do the short-intermediate routes, which I enjoy running.”
Shepard averaged 50 receptions for 573 yards and nearly five touchdowns per season out of the slot from 2016-18, per Pro Football Focus. In the two seasons after Tate replaced the traded Odell Beckham Jr., Shepard totaled 49 catches for 496 yards and three touchdowns on the outside.
Since Shepard’s rookie year, when he made 92 percent of his receptions out of the slot and played 82 percent of his snaps out of the slot, both measures have declined every year to career-lows of 30 percent and 34 percent, respectively. He averaged a pedestrian 3 yards of separation per route last season — more than Slayton and Tate in 2020 and more than Golladay with the Lions in 2019 — but should recapture some dynamic catch-and-run ability with his return to the slot, and the additions of Golladay and tight end Kyle Rudolph.
“Playmakers are what we need,” Shepard said, “and I think what we addressed over the offseason.”
Of the 80 receivers last season to see at least 80 targets, Shepard ranked No. 11 by hauling in 94.3 percent of catchable passes, according to PFF. Because he was deployed in Jason Garrett’s scheme like a slot receiver on the outside, Shepard turned 37 of his 66 receptions last season into first downs and scored the analytics site’s 16th-highest grade on non-vertical routes. He seldom streaked down the sideline.
“The more guys we have that can make big things happen, the defense is going to have to pay attention to them,” Shepard said. “It frees guys up.”
When the Giants drafted first-rounder Kadarius Toney — who played predominantly in the slot at Florida — coach Joe Judge quickly called Shepard to deliver a message: He is not your replacement.
An equipment malfunction, an injury and a then-unsigned contract caused Toney to only complete one full practice in the spring, and he will be on a slow ramp into training camp after coming off the COVID-19 reserve list, so Shepard is not in any danger of losing any early-season reps. When the Giants go with a two-receiver, two-tight end formation, Shepard’s versatility could take him back to the perimeter.
“I think I’ll be bouncing around to a lot of different positions, kind of like I did at the end of last year,” Shepard said. “There are some things I love to do outside. I’m looking forward to being wherever the coaches see me fitting best.”