EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Seven months of pent-up energy is beginning to burst out at New York Giants training camp. Thursday was the second day in a row that practice was filled with pushing matches and scuffles.
The most notable was a pushing and shouting match between defensive lineman Damon Harrison and offensive tackle Bobby Hart. That lasted longer than usual and stretched between drills. The two shouted at each other and tried to engage several times as teammates held them back.
"That's football, that's August camp," offensive lineman Justin Pugh said. "It happens every year. You go into the locker room, you shake that guy's hand, you move on from it. It's part of it. Nine-on-seven, three days in pads we've been, so it was bound to happen. We've just got to make sure we protect each other because we're family. At the end of the day, come September, whenever we play Dallas, we're all on the same team, we're wearing the same jersey. So that's the thing we have to keep in mind."
Harrison and Hart weren't the only "dust-up." That's what coach Ben McAdoo seems to call any sort of camp confrontation.
There were plenty of them Thursday. Right tackle Adam Bisnowaty and defensive end Romeo Okwara got into it on several plays. Harrison, centers Weston Richburg and Brett Jones, defensive tackle Josh Banks and defensive end Olivier Vernon also got into the action.
Most of the incidents occurred during physical running drills early.
"I like the intensity early in practice. I thought we were physical on both sides of the ball. On the half-line drill, then we turn it into our 9-on-7 drill, inside run ... it was very physical with the gap schemes and that's a part of it, but we need that physicality," McAdoo said. "We're going to turn into a heavy-handed, physical football team. We just have to do a better job of handling the extracurricular activities after the whistle."
McAdoo thinks it will happen soon. His team just finished its first three days in pads -- the last two being in full pads -- and the Giants have a walk-through scheduled for Friday. If the skirmishes don't dissipate, then McAdoo said he'll get involved.
In the meantime, it's just football. It's just training camp. It's just practice.
"We're just out there trying to get better," Vernon said. "Once you get in full pads, blood gets flowing and it gets very competitive out there. You know, that's football."
Other practice notables:
The last two days reinforced that the Giants may have trouble at offensive tackle. Some of the technique flaws that plagued Ereck Flowers in pass protection last season have resurfaced at camp. His hands get wide, body weight out of sorts (which causes a lean) and his punch is nonexistent. Vernon is having his way with the left tackle.
Hart had a rough afternoon Thursday after a strong practice Friday. Aside from his intense yelling match with Harrison, Hart also jumped offside and had a handful of bad reps. He was beaten badly off the edge by Jason Pierre-Paul on one play and pushed deep into the backfield on another. Pierre-Paul also had a batted pass. Hart had a much more productive day Wednesday when Pierre-Paul had the day off.
Defensive tackle Jay Bromley spent his afternoon in the backfield. Bromley, who is behind Robert Thomas on the depth chart, showed well during the running drills and used his agility to get upfield in 11-on-11 drills. Bromley is trying to make a move for the starting defensive tackle spot next to Harrison.
Safeties Nat Berhe and Darian Thompson each had an interception in live drills. Berhe made a nice diving catch on a Josh Johnson pass and Thompson snagged an Eli Manning floater with blitzers in his face.
The quarterback rundown (unofficial):
Manning completed 13 of 18 passes, many of them dumpoffs or screens. He did hit wide receiver Brandon Marshall for a touchdown on a fade pass to the corner of the end zone. This is what the Giants were hoping to see when they signed Marshall this offseason. That 6-foot-5 frame was noticeable against Eli Apple.
In the backup quarterback competition, Geno Smith worked with the second team and was 9-of-12 while Josh Johnson was 7-of-9 passing with an interception.
