New York Giants Training Camp Preview: Running Back

As the month of July nears a close, that means one thing in the NFL; the beginning of training camps. For a team like the New York Giants, it will be another important training camp. Last season it was the offense receiving an overhaul, this time it will be the defense. They brought back a familiar face in Steve Spagnuolo to be the defensive coordinator, replacing Perry Fewell. Also, there are still some kinks to be worked out offensively, as second year offensive coordinator had a good rookie campaign last season in which he will look to build upon.

This could be a make or break season for the Giants from a franchise era standpoint. If they miss the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year, we could see a real overhaul not only on the roster, but coaching staff as well. Tom Coughlin has overseen two Super Bowl titles as his time as head coach with the Giants, but very little success outside of that, missing the playoffs six times and being one and done in the playoffs the other four times they made the postseason.

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Could the Giants break their streak of missing the playoffs, and continue their trend of winning the Super Bowl every four seasons? Training camp will give a lot of insight to where the Giants are at, as there are plenty of questions to be answered once the Giants open camp July 29th. We will have you covered on the storylines to follow here at Empire Writes Back, giving a position by position preview heading up to that date. The second position we will take a look at will be running back.

Depth Chart:

Starters: Rashad Jennings, Henry Hynoski (FB)
Third Down Back: Shane Vereen
Backups: Andre Williams, Orleans Darkwa
Roster Bubble: Akeem Hunt, Kenneth Harper, Will Tye (FB), Nikita Whitlock (FB)

Arguably the Giants’ biggest offseason acquisition is a part of this unit, as they were able to sign Shane Vereen away from the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots. He will not only bringing a winning attitude with him, but fill a huge hole for the Giants at running back; a running back that can be used in the passing game.

Last season the Giants running backs not only struggled running the ball, but struggled in receiving the football and pass protecting for Eli Manning. Vereen should help all of those areas, as he is an exceptional in pass protection, and is adept in the receiving game. If the Giants so choose to, they can even use Vereen as a slot receiver, or split him out wide; something they envisioned using David Wilson for before neck injuries forced him into an early retirement.

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While Vereen will be a big part of the offense, Rashad Jennings should still be looked at as the starting running back. He will handle early down duty, and holds his own in the passing game. He is a very versatile running back, the biggest problem with him though is his health. He was never played all 16 games in a season or accumulated 200 touches in a season. Because of that, it was a necessity that the Giants added someone with the versatility of Vereen to help take some of the load off of the veteran’s shoulders.

Part of that need arose also because of the limited success that Andre Williams had in his rookie season. The Giants knew he would be a project in the passing game, as he caught only 10 passes his collegiate career at Boston College. But, they could have never predicted the struggles he would have running the ball. He seemed timid at times in the backfield, not knowing when to hit a hole at the right time, resulting in too many inefficient runs.

On the season, Williams rushed for two yards or less 110 times out of the 217 carries he had on the season. Three of the runs resulted in touchdowns, but even if you take those out, nearly half of his rushes still resulted in minimal production.

Jun 16, 2015; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants running back Shane Vereen (34) participates in practice during minicamp at Quest Diagnostics Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Steven Ryan-USA TODAY Sports

Because of that, his role currently is unknown. The Giants could work him into early down work to give Jennings a rest, but at this time he may be best suited for a battering ram type role in goal line situations. His lack of ability in the passing game limits what the Giants can do with him, as it essentially tips what they are going to try to do whenever he is on the field.

Hynoski is a Big Blue fan favorite, and will continue his role as the fullback even though the Giants seemed to use him less in Ben McAdoo’s offense. But, even with a decreased role, his roster spot isn’t in jeopardy unless he suffered another serious injury. That is the only thing that would get Tye or Whitlock on the roster over him. The same goes for Kenneth Harper, who has a tall hill to climb to make the final roster.

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Orleans Darkwa is a player the Giants brought on last season when they were hit by injuries, but his roster spot isn’t guaranteed. That could be directly correlated to Akeem Hunt. One of the biggest problems with the group the Giants compiled at running back last season once Wilson retired was they lacked any type of speed or game breaking ability. That is exactly what the diminutive Hunt could bring to the table. He was used in a number of ways at Purdue, and could carve out a role with the Giants as a gadget type player with the ability to rip off big plays.

Special teams will also play a big part in deciding the end of the running back depth chart. Hunt could be a contributor here as well. The Giants cannot afford to use Odell Beckham Jr. anymore on punt returns because of what he brings to the offense, so Hunt could find himself back there. He will have plenty of competition for it, but to make the final roster he will have to show something on special teams, as Darkwa contributes there as well.

The Giants running back core, like last year, looks solid going into training camp. Hopefully this time around they can get through it without a career-ending injury throwing everything out of loop and taking the Giants off track heading into the regular season.

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