Giants.com names three players who made a key impact at Saturday's practice:

TE RHETT ELLISON

The Giants put the shoulder pads on for the first time today at training camp, so it's only natural Rhett Ellison made an impact. The veteran tight end, who was limited in the spring because of a calf issue, looked sharp on Tuesday and hooked up with Eli Manning for a handful of completions. But the former Viking wasn't signed this offseason just to catch passes. He's a physical player who can block from the line of scrimmage or out of the backfield like a fullback.

**>> PRACTICE NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS**

"They want versatile guys," Ellison said. "I don't think it's just in the tight end room. They want guys they can move around all over the place – just so you're not stuck in a vanilla offense, you can change it up. And adding guys that can be versatile is going to help."

CB ELI APPLE

Playing cornerback is a game of confidence, and last year's first-round draft pick has a lot of it right now. His head coach said as much today after a practice in which Apple got the better of Odell Beckham Jr. a few times during team reps (it should also be mentioned that Beckham did show the second-year pro a thing or two during one-on-one drills). And like all teams that aspire to be great, practices can be tougher than the games because of the level of competition. That's kind of what is happening this summer between the receivers and defensive backs, two of the best units in the league at their respective positions.

"You can see him taking what he learns in the film room over to the practice field," Ben McAdoo said of Apple. "And he's competing against some pretty good players out there and he enjoys that, likes it. His confidence is going up. He's a big, physical player, and he's playing to that."

QB ELI MANNING

It wasn't the most glamorous practice today at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center, but there was one constant: No. 10. The franchise quarterback, who is entering his 14th season, spread the ball around, connecting with everyone from Ellison to Brandon Marshall to Sterling Shepard to Tavarres King to Evan Engram and, of course, to Beckham.

"Playing with other guys that had strong arms, you know, there's some guys that have strong arms and they wait to see if you're open," Marshall said earlier in camp. "Eli, he has a very good arm, and he also has amazing timing. So, that's the difference. Eli is one of the best at getting the ball out fast, and as a receiver, you've got to get your head around and you've got to run."