NY Giants’ Sterling Shepard fires back at Joe Judge detractors

Sterling Shepard came to the defense of NY Giants head coach Joe Judge and his old school tactics, in the strongest possible way 

Three recently-signed NY Giants players have retired since training camp began, and wide receiver Sterling Shepard had a strong message for any players or anyone outside the organization blaming Joe Judge and his hard practice tactics.

“If you don’t like it, then you’re welcome to leave,” Shepard told reporters Wednesday.

Judge has famously sent players — and coaches — running penalty laps around the perimeter of the field for mistakes during his first two camps as Giants head coach, and Tuesday ripped into his team before sending them on multiple sets of 100-yard gassers with sets of 10-pushups in between and proceeding to cut practice short, following a full-team fight.

"“When you get a 15-yard penalty, you have to run that much further to score,” Judge said Wednesday. “When you have a consequence of that, where you have to run right away, that reinforces that ‘hey, I can’t make that mistake.’ When there’s an issue with ball-handling, substitutions, lack of focus, whatever it may be, there needs to be some kind of reinforcement right away. It’s not always running. Sometimes it is.”"

Why Sterling Shepard’s defense of NY Giants coach Joe Judge holds weight

The second-year head coach has taken plenty of heat from members of the media, and former NFL players alike, for his old-school tactics. However, it is clear that Judge is aiming to build a culture around a commitment to fundamentals and physicality.

Tight end Kelvin Benjamin, linebacker Todd Davis, and offensive lineman Joe Looney all retired following short stints in NY Giants camp — Davis and Looney just four days, but all have differing circumstances for hanging it up.

Previously, Shepard has been a staunch defender of Judge’s tactics, saying that the brutal practices of last summer were exactly what the NY Giants needed.

Shepard, the longest-tenured player on the NY Giants roster, believes that Judge has the commitment and buy-in from his players.

"“That’s kind of the standard that we’ve set here in this building and as a team,” Shepard said. “And I think guys have bought in and know what to expect whenever you step on the field and when you’re playing under a guy like Coach Judge.  that’s the way that we do things around here and everybody is standing by that, and I’m all for it. I mean, it’s a little different for us because we’re receivers, we’ve got to be able to run all day, but I don’t mind it.”"

Matt Lombardo is FanSided’s National NFL Insider and writes Between The Hash Marks each Wednesday. Email Matt: Matt.Lombardo@FanSided.com