8/05 NY Giants Training Camp Quotes from Head Coach Tom Coughlin

First published on Examiner

New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin is pleased with the way his team looks thus far in training camp. He knows, however, that his roster has yet to peak. "It's our first day in any kind of pads and it's nice and humid, we obviously took advantage of that," Coughlin said after Thursday's morning practice. "Some parts were crisp, some parts weren't. That's just the constant battle to come out, particularly that first day, and take some of those drills you've been doing in shells and learn where you're fit goes with sticking that shoulder pad in there and that helmet in there. Those are the things. I was pleased with some of the work. I was pleased with the way they were enthusiastic by supporting each other. Some good things happened, even on both sides of the ball."

Coach Coughlin talked about the importance of having both day and evening practices, saying "The reason for the night practice, to be honest with you, is you want the amount of time between practices. You just increase that as rest interval so you think you can get more done at night. It's a nice change-up for the players. It's probably going to be hot and humid this afternoon, too, which will be good."

Having quarterback Eli Manning in your team's training camp is like having a coach in the huddle. That doesn't mean Coughlin doesn't expect Manning to improve his play with every season. "The only questions I ever have (about Manning) are as we continue to upgrade our expectation level and he's well aware of that," Coughlin remarked. "He's Eli. He's flying along and making, from an academic standpoint, seeing everything, doing everything."

Tom Coughlin also joined several defensive players in praising rookie defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, a young man that has been very impressive thus far in camp. On Pierre-Paul, Coughlin stated "I've seen a lot of athleticism. I've seen on all of these special teams and seem him get off the ball and rush the passer. The athletic part of it gives you an awful lot of possibilities in terms of utilizing him in a lot of different roles."

Coughlin also said wide receiver Hakeem Nicks will practice this afternoon (knee). Shaun O'Hara (ankle) could return to the field on Monday.

Head coach Tom Coughlin has had both the Giants' offense and defense working diligently on turnover drills. Coughlin has not hidden his displeasure with the Giants' turnover ratio in 2009. When the subject came up on Wednesday, Coughlin stated "I don't even want to talk about it."

All quotes via New York Giants Communications Office

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