Odell Beckham Jr. likely to get green light for Giants' joint practices with Lions
Odell Beckham Jr. runs after a catch against Landon Collins, center, and William Gay during Giants' camp on Sunday, Aug. 12. Credit: Brad Penner
Pat Shurmur did not have Odell Beckham Jr. play in last week’s preseason opener against the Browns. It sounds as if he might ask the receiver to take part in this week’s joint practices against the Lions.
“I don’t think it has to be [as risky as a preseason game],” the Giants’ coach said of the upcoming workouts.
The Giants will practice against the Lions on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and Shurmur said he has enough trust in Lions coach Matt Patricia to establish a safe tempo and prevent dangerous situations from cropping up.
“I’ve got a good relationship with Matt,” Shurmur said. “I’ve done this twice when I was with the Eagles against the Patriots, and Matt and I worked together on it — the offensive coordinator on one team works with the defensive coordinator on the other — so Matt and I kind of organized our stuff. We’re used to the process, so I anticipate it’ll be really good work.”
Last week, Beckham said it was a “calculated” risk to take part in practices with the Giants because he is going against teammates who are not only competing against him but looking out for him. Against the Lions, the latter won’t matter to the defenders.
Setting a tone
The players are looking forward to the practices.
“Because you’re going against somebody different each and every day, you can test as a team, you can test other players,” safety Landon Collins said. “You can finally get more aggressive.”
Nate Solder isn’t worried about things getting too chippy.
“Usually it’s a very professional atmosphere where guys play hard between the whistles,” the left tackle said. “I think that’s the way you have to keep it, because tensions can rise when you’re that competitive at times. That’s always a good thing as long as guys are doing it in the spirit of competition.”
Giant steps
James Bettcher’s mother passed away last week and the defensive coordinator was in Indiana on Sunday. Shurmur said he will meet the team in Detroit on Monday night or Tuesday morning . . . Linebacker Connor Barwin sat out Sunday’s practice with “soreness” from the game . . . Safety Curtis Riley, who did not play on Thursday because of a hamstring injury, was a full participant in Sunday’s practice.
