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The air rustles as the calendar turns from July to August. The drink tastes colder, the sun feels brighter, and the grassy aroma is far superior to what emanates from his New Jersey Turnpike.
The NFL regular season is approaching.
The New York Giants are one of 32 teams to begin training camps in preparation for a grueling 18-week season. Despite the scorching heat, the Quest Diagnostics Giants Training Center, adjacent to MetLife Stadium, was packed with fans.
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The Giants are looking to not only achieve six wins or more, but also return to the postseason for the first time since 2016. The team is back with a new looking front office led by Joe Shane and a new coaching staff led by Brian Dabor. It was anchored by Mike Kafka and Don “Wink” Martindale.
Adley Jackson will be a key part of the Giants’ defense. Darnay Holmes will enter Season 3, while Aaron Robinson and Rodarius Williams will enter Season 2.
Jackson told Fox News Digital from inside the team’s practice bubble that he’s trying to instill some of his own wisdom so his teammates don’t make the same mistakes he did.
“I think that’s my role. I’m just trying to help. And it’s crazy when someone says, ‘I remember seeing you in college.’ Am I that old? Smile.”I think I’m just trying to be like my cousin instead of like my big brother because it’s cool. You always have your favorite cousins.I’m like to them.” “I need something, but don’t hold back too much. I like it when people come to me as they feel. It’s the way we are and we try to lead by example every day.”
Leadership isn’t just what Jackson talks about. He shows it on and off the field.
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When the cloudless temperatures started heading into the 90s, Jackson made sure to get the reps on board. He played his one-on-one with wide receivers and practiced defending all types of routes. In an 11-on-11 practice, Jackson faced Kenny Goladay. Kenny Goladay is expected to break out after his disappointing 2021 season. Golladay caught a pass from quarterback Daniel Jones to Jackson.
Golladay and Jackson also went one-on-one, with the wide receiver beating the veteran cornerback as well.
When asked about the fight, Jackson smiled.
“Me and KG, Shoot, everybody’s fighting. That’s the fun part,” he said. It’s a competition.
With Martindale as the new defensive coordinator, Jackson has to get up early for practice and hit the books to study defensive schemes. He told Fox News Digital that he’s always thinking of things he could have done better in practice and is working to fix it.
The New York Giants will wear classic blue uniforms for two games this season.
“Dude, it’s often crazy. Even when we do walkthroughs and such, I’ll watch. [the] Planning, I was like, ‘Oh, this read, this play,’ and (Darius) Slayton, this route, this is what he did, or oh, I could probably do this better. It’s always me who thinks about it and watches movies,” he said.
“Eli[Manning]came here yesterday and said if you don’t do anything today, you’re not getting better. You can’t stay the same. It’s getting worse and better. At the end of the day, better Good, I’m trying to find out what worked for me.”
I can’t help but notice how enlightening the practice was.
The coach was infuriating his players as the competition on the field was fierce. When asked if it was the new coaches walking around the sidelines that made things feel more hopeful, Jackson said they weren’t the only ones making things more exciting.
“They were cheering and going wild,” he said. “It excites you. You play music, you get fans. Especially with coaches, you start with them too, man — trash talk. I love it. You play They play anything and we just go back and forth. The coaching staff are bragging about their… you just feel it. That’s good.
After spending the first part of his career with the Tennessee Titans, Jackson signed a three-year deal coming to the Giants before the start of the 2021 season.
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He said heritage and tradition drew him to one of the oldest NFL franchises.
“I feel like it’s a mecca or a place to be. It’s really about the end-of-the-day tradition,” he told Fox News Digital. All I could hear was the Giants, the Patriots, the Cowboys, the Phillies.It was hardly easy.It just felt different, it felt like home.”
Around Jackson inside the fieldhouse were former USC standout players playing in the same secondary they play now, including Corey Webster, Sam Madison, and Myron Guyton, among others.
The team may be a long way from the last Super Bowl-winning team in 2011, but Jackson said the team must play together to get back there.
“It’s going to take collective buy-in, doing little things and having one goal, one band, one sound, like a drumline,” he said. “No one is greater than the team. The strongest link, the weakest link will all be the same. We just want to get better.” [at] end of the day. I think it is necessary. Hold each other accountable and as a unit push each other every day. ”
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Jackson will appear in 13 games in his first season with the Giants. He has 62 tackles, 8 passes defended and 1 interception.