Travis Beckum missing reps, opportunity to find a home

I caught up with Travis Beckum a few days ago and spoke with him about missing so many practices with a hamstring injury. Then he came back for a practice and it seemed like it was a non-story. Now he’s missing practices again, so I’ll tell you what he said.

I asked him if sitting out in training camp is a hindrance to the team finding a spot for him in the offense. It’s no secret that Beckum’s skill set is different from those of the other tight ends.

“I think it definitely plays a part in it,” he said. “One thing about me that I know and the coaches know: Mental reps are good but as far as being in there and taking those physical reps, it’s very important too. But at the same time you don’t want to make anything out of an injury that’s not healed.”

Tight ends coach Mike Pope had said earlier in camp that the Giants really wanted Beckum to work on his blocking. That way, a defense would not see he was on the field, recognize it was going to be a pass play, and switch to a nickel or some other sub package. Beckum said as much, too.

“I don’t know if its necessarily just from the Y position [next to the tackle],” Beckum said. “I may be blocking from the slot or maybe out wide. But I have to have a mixture of both to kind of make me not so much of a one-dimensional player.”

Right now he’s a no-dimensional player on the sideline. He’ll have to get healthy for the Giants to figure out where he fits.