Mike Shula looking forward to Giants’ from liuyt's blog

“versatile” offense debuting on Sunday On Sunday Nate Solder Jersey , the New York Giants open their 2018 regular-season slate at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars. There is much new about this iteration of the Giants, and much of that is on the offensive side of the ball. That includes their offensive coordinator, with Mike Shula taking over for Mike Sullivan in February following the hire of Pat Shurmur as the Giants’ new head coach. Shula spoke with the media on Thursday.On his offensive weaponryThe Giants aren’t lacking for offensive playmakers this year. The healthy return of Odell Beckham, Jr. means that quarterback Eli Manning again has an elite-level target to throw to, while the addition of running back Saquon Barkley in the first round of the 2018 NFL Draft should make both the running and passing games better. Add in receivers Sterling Shepard and tight end Evan Engram and the offense presents myriad options to take advantage of opposing defenses.Shula’s goal is “to use the guys the best way we can,” adding that “the number-one thing is to have our guys playing fast, and knowing what to do and doing it fast because we feel like if they do that, it gives us our best chance.” It starts with Manning: “We want to have Eli make good decisions and take what they give you, you hear that all the time, find the one on ones and things like that.” Ultimately, Shula knows that the key to the Giants’ offensive success will hinge on finding the best ways to use their collection of talent. “We want to be versatile with our scheme, whether we’re running it, throwing it, quick game, drop back, play action, misdirection, but also versatile with where the ball’s going based on our personnel,” said Shula. And though Shula cited Beckham as having “really, really good hands and he’s a guy that has made big plays in big situations Authentic Sterling Shepard Jersey ,” he was also quick to point out that Beckham is “a big piece to our puzzle, he’s not the only piece.”Why Kyle Lauletta got the nod over Davis WebbOne of the more surprising decisions the Giants made as part of the weekend’s roster cuts was the decision to release backup quarterback Davis Webb, whom the team selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Now, Manning’s backups will be Alex Tanney and Kyle Lauletta, the latter selected by the Giants in Round 4 of this year’s draft.Shula cited Lauletta’s ability to learn the position quickly as a major factor in his earning of a roster spot. “We think Kyle is a young guy that just has continued to get better with reps. He’s got very good football intelligence, I think he’s got some intangibles that you need at that position,” said Shula. “You can kind of sense that day in and day out, the learning process that [Lauletta’s] going through and how quickly he’s picking things up — not just by what you see on the field, but how he is in the meeting rooms with the other players, always kind of thinking about things other than maybe just the way it’s drawn up.”Panthers’ coach Ron Rivera on Eli Manning: “I still see the same guy” With the New York Giants moving on from their 33-18 loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, the team looks to move forward and set focus on the Carolina Panthers. With the Giants making the move down to Charlotte for the weekend matchup, Panthers head coach Ron Rivera spoke with the media on Wednesday about Big Blue. Let’s take a look at some takeaways from his time with the media. On what he has seen out of the Giants offense and whether he expects to seen anything different Sunday...“I don’t necessarily think that,” Rivera said. “I’m not going to see anything different, because you’re going to game plan how you think you can best attack a team, so that’d be up to Pat. But looking at what they’re doing right now, there’s some good things going on. I think this is a team that’s trying to find itself, they’ve had some injuries, they’ve had some players they’ve had to move around. I know last week they didn’t have Evan Engram, who I think is a big part of what they want to do, so again I think it’s a good football team that’s finding itself. You’ve got a new head coach with new philosophies Youth Kareem Martin Jersey , new ideas, and you’ve got some new players in key spots. I like who they have, I think they’re a very talented football team, I’ll tell you that right now. It’s just a matter of time before they put it all together and they’re the type of football team that, believe me, people are going to hear from.”On what Giants general manager Dave Gettleman means to him...“I really appreciated working with Dave,” Rivera said. “I like who he is as a person and as a scout. He really understands and knows players, he came in with the philosophy of we were going to bring in big guys up front because they allow you to compete, and it worked for us, it worked very well for us. We’re still seeing the aftereffects of the players he brought in. It was a very positive situation, I really enjoyed working with him. He’s a northeast guy and you can feel it when dealing with him. The one thing with Dave, Dave was always upfront, a straight shooter, very honest – brutally honest, almost to a fault – but he was a lot of fun to be around.”On what he has seen out of quarterback Eli Manning this year and whether he seems like the same quarterback he has seen in the past...“Yes I do, it’s just throwing different route combinations, that’s pretty much it,” Rivera said. “The dude – you’re talking about a two-time Super Bowl MVP. There’s something about your game that’s special, and I think he’s a special player. Again, as I said Youth Ray-Ray Armstrong Jersey , new offense and they’re learning things, they’re learning how to play it, it takes a little bit of time, you don’t just plug in and say OK this is it. They’ve got to understand each other’s philosophy, they’ve got to understand what the other players are doing. That’s a lot to learn when you install a new offense, but I still see the same guy – good decision maker, good arm, and he’s a winner. Believe me, we’re not taking these guys lightly. This football team’s got way too much talent, but again, like I said, they’re still growing.”About former coaches and players being on the other side of the field...“Like I say, we know that they know that I know that you know that he knows, so we’ll go from there,” Rivera said. “It’s different. They’re in a different environment with different players, we have different players. It’s a different environment. We’ll see how it goes though, but the only thing you’re familiar about is who they are as people and that’s the most important thing.”