August 24, 2012; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants tight end Martellus Bennett (85) and wide receiver Ramses Barden (13) and center David Bass (64) celebrate Barden

Well, there was not quite as many questions entering this season as compared to last year, but there were still some areas of concern. With training camp drawing to a close and the season only being a week away let’s look at what we got out of  the preseason and who is poised to help this team.

On the offensive side of the ball the Giants had questions and TE, WR and RB. So what did we learn? The biggest concern was at TE,and the aquisition of Martellus Bennett turned out to be huge. The big TE had a monster preseason and showed great hands and physical toughness that has made me long forget about Kevin Boss and Jake Ballard. He looks like exactly what the Giants needed and should make his presence felt immediately against his former team in week one.

At WR the two players that impressed me this year were Ramses Barden and rookie Rueban Randle. I had hoped Barden would finally step his game up this year And live up to some of last years hopes that he could be a bigger part of the offense. Randle looked impressive in his route running especially for a rookie. The Giants have missed that receiver who could go up and get the jump ball since Burress left and height of both Barden at 6’6″ and Randle at 6’3″will help in the green zone this year. And both will see significant playing time this year and could move up past Jernigan and Hixon respectively.

With Brandon Jacobs gone this year it was time for Ware or Scott to finally step up and take control of the number two RB spot. Well, both backs had unimpressive training camps and that opened the door for rookie David Wilson who seized the opportunity and is clearly a head above the other two backs to be behind Bradshaw. Wilson showed a lot of burst and vision against the bears as well as a few nice catch and runs in the preseason and will help the run game improve this year.

Once again the defense has suffered some injuries that is a cause for concern. With T2 and Prince starting the season injured once again it could be a little make shift in the defensive back field again early on this year. But a few new players have shined bright in the preseason, namely Keith Rivers at OLB and Jayron Hosley at nickle back and will add depth to what could be the number one defense in the NFL. The DL will be a beast again especially with Osi starting the season on the field and the contract out of the way.

This could once again be a very special year for the NY Football Giants and have to be on everyone’s board when it comes to post season picks.

However, the Giants have gotten some encouragement. Hakeem Nicks, New York’s star wideout practiced back with the team for the first time since suffering a broken foot. He suffered the injury in OTAs.

Nicks participated in some team drills and was in on about half of the first team snaps. There was some concern regarding Nicks’ injury. The initial break was thought to be one that could hamper him into the early part of the season, but Nicks appears to have a made a pretty quick recovery.

Along with Nicks participation in practice for the first time this pre-season was a familiar figure riding a bike in the background…It was Shaun Rogers.  It was reported last week that due to blood clots in his lower legs Shaun would be lost for the season. But as the Giants signed players last week to fill some wholes, they didn’t place Rogers on IR, which would be the logical thing to do if he were indeed done for the season.  Instead the Giants and Rogers sought a second opinion on his medical situation, and he might not be lost after all.

So, while the injury bug still bites players like Will Beatty, Michael Boley, and Jayron Hosley, there just might be some good news on the horizon to offset some of the bad.

The offense seems to be coming together, although the execution could have been better. The chemistry between Eli Manning and Victor Cruz already looks to be in midseason form. Cruz gave the Jets secondary fits in the first half, finishing with five receptions for 51 yards.

Ahmad Bradshaw didn’t see much playing time tonight. He left early in the first quarter to get x-rays on his right hand which turned out to be negative.

The battle for Bradshaw’s primary backup didn’t get much seperation tonight. D.J. Ware saw early action after Bradshaw went out of the game, however didn’t really make a get that attention grabbing moment tonight against the Jets. Ware finished with 15 yards on 11 carries. Rookie David Wilson had 26 yards on eight carries and it seems the first round selection may have the inside track on getting more time.

Jayron Hosley had the highlight of the night when he intercepted Mark Sanchez and returned it 77 yards for a touchdown. Hosley may have opened more eyes tonight with that play.

The battle for the third wide receiver spot remains to be a battle. Ramses Barden failed to gain any seperation from the pack of receivers battling for the position. Barden was the first on the field to receive a chance on third down and dropped the pass Manning threw his way. The next pass thrown to him also went incomplete in the end zone when he couldn’t get seperation from Darrelle Revis. Second round pick Rueben Randle’s one catch on the night was an impressive one on a deep pass from David Carr that went for 49 yards. It wouldn’t surprise me if head coach Tom Coughlin is thinking this might just be a receiver by committee scenario until someone breaks out from the pack.

If there is an area of concern it would definitely be the stability and depth of the Giants defensive line. They have been hit hard by injuries this summer. Backup middle linebacker Mark Herzlich left the game in the third quarter with a hip pointer. Herzlich has played well in camp and is pushing Chase Blackburn for that starting spot.

Next week the Giants get to play their first official “home” game when the Chicago Bears come in for week 3 of the preseason.

Feb 26, 2012; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Virginia Tech Hokies running back David Wilson does running drills during the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-US PRESSWIRE

A true evaluation of a draft class takes three or four seasons, but I think the Giants may have themselves a very good group of ballplayers. I’m not sure I want to go as far as saying this group will rival the class of 2007, but I think this draft may be a very, very good one. Let’s talk about why….

Apr 26, 2012; New York, NY, USA; New York Giant fans react to the pick of David Wilson during the 2012 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall Mandatory Credit: William Perlman/The Star-Ledger via US PRESSWIRE

After all the mock drafts and all the speculation the picks have all been made. So how did Big Blue do? With the departures of Brandon Jacobs, Mario Manningham, Aaron Ross, Dave Tollefson and with Ballard and Beckum not being able to start the season due to injury there were holes that needed to be filled. Due to successes Reese has had in recent drafts he has earned the benefit of the doubt when it comes to selecting players.

Overall I would rate the Giants draft as a B. They were able to fill the holes they had with players that have very good potential. David Wilson and Rueban Randle were very solid picks with huge upsides. Jayron Hosley is an extremely athletic corner that can make up for his lack of size with raw ability. Adrien Robinson is a big fast TE that will help the running game, although he tends to take plays off. Brandon Moseley OT has a huge upside, he is a physical player with a lot of experience. Since he played in the spread offense there may be a learning curve. The last two picks of OT Matt McCants and DT Markus Kuhn were very good picks for the late rounds. Both have all the tools to play at this level, but need some time to excel and hone there playing skills and have the ability to become the diamonds in the rough all teams look for in 6th and 7th rounds. There should be some nice surprises when all is said and done.

In his Sophomore season at cornerback for VT, he had 31 tackles, three interceptions, one fumble recovery, and one forced fumble in eight games (all starts). Hosley averaged 11.1 yards as the Hokies’ primary punt returner. He played in all 13 games in 2011 but he had hamstring and concussion issues and saw his interception total fall off to three. He still recorded a career-high 59 total tackles and 12 pass break-ups. Hosley ran into problems during the Combines lying to teams that he had not used Marijuana. He later wrote apology letters to all 32 teams for his deception.

Before the Combine, many experts picked Burfict to be drafted in the first round and now there is the possibility that he won’t be drafted at all. Teams began to question Burfict’s value when he had a poor performance at the Combine. Scout.com states:

“He ran a sluggish 40-yard dash at the combine in February, a high 4.9 to 5.09 clocking that he improved to 4.79 to 4.85 seconds at his campus Pro Day workout this spring.

And Burfict reportedly struggled during interviews at the combine, something he says he wished he had handled better during a generally overwhelming experience.

Burfict emphasized that he has turned things around since the combine and is eager to prove himself on and off the field.

Burfict said he’s down to 243 pounds after playing at roughly 260 pounds last season.”

This is the most important time in Burfict’s life. It is reported that he’s displayed a new work ethic since the Combine and is determined to become a valuable contributor to an NFL team.

It has also been reported that Ohio State tackle Mike Adams and Virginia Tech cornerback Jayron Hosley have failed drug tests.

Some teams frown upon this type of issue while others are not so concerned. It will be interesting to see how this plays out in the NFL Draft today.