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2024 Training Camp

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Nick McCloud plays with 'whole bag' of chips on his shoulder

NICK-MCCLOUD

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Jerome Henderson said it is inaccurate to attach the cliché about having a chip on your shoulder to cornerback Nick McCloud.

"If you know Nick McCloud, he carries a chip, a whole bag of them around all the time," said Henderson, the Giants' defensive backs/defensive passing game coordinator.

That bag of chips might help McCloud earn a spot on the first team defense.

The Giants' position coaches spoke to the media today for the first time since training camp opened and Henderson is unique among them with two starting jobs up for grabs. They are the corner position opposite Deonte Bank and the safety spot next to Jason Pinnock.

Cor'Dale Flott has been working on the outside with the first team throughout camp, with McCloud mostly at nickel corner. But Flott did not play in the preseason opener against Detroit because of a quad injury, and it's uncertain when he may return. That gives McCloud, a fourth-year pro with 11 career starts, the prospect of securing a starting role.

McCloud was one of numerous prospective starters who got the night off vs. the Lions but are expected to see action Saturday in Houston.

"Definitely a huge opportunity," McCloud said. "I don't think I'm just trying to take this opportunity to go win a job. Every time I step on the practice field, I'm trying to win a job. Whatever reps that I get, those are valuable reps. I went from last year, I didn't get any reps with the ones and the twos, really. Now I'm getting some reps. I just take every opportunity at practice, game, whatever it may be, just try to maximize that."

About those chips…

"Really just going back to my roots," said McCloud, who is beginning his third Giants season. "Three-star recruit out of high school. I really didn't get much love coming out of high school. Just going through the stuff I went through in college, staying five years (four at North Carolina State, one at Notre Dame). And then obviously being undrafted. It's not really hard for me to wake up with a chip on my shoulder. But I feel like I'm moving past that point of just trying to prove people wrong. Now I'm to the point to where the people who are in my corner, I'm just going to try to prove them right. So that's just how I feel about that."

"He goes into every situation with absolute confidence that he can go out there and that he's a starter in this league and that he should be playing, and that's his mentality since day one here," Henderson said. "At the same time, he's a great teammate."

McCloud was one of 16 Giants to play all 17 games last season. He started three and finished with 22 tackles (17 solo) and one interception. In practice today, McCloud started on the outside but later moved to the slot with second-year pro Tre Hawkins stepping in at corner. Henderson said that versatility a reason McCloud is so valuable.

"He just does whatever you ask him to do, but he's really, really ultra-competitive, ultra confident," Henderson said. "He's the guy and again, he'll get his chance this weekend to be out there and we'll see how it looks."

The contenders for the open safety position are third-year pro Dane Belton and rookie second-round draft choice Tyler Nubin, who missed several practices with a calf injury. Because Pinnock didn't play, they were the starting safety tandem in the victory against the Lions.

"Nubin hasn't had a chance to be out there very much," Henderson said. "He got his first real action in the game. Did some good stuff, and thought Dane played well, too. That position, we're still working through that one. They're both gonna get reps. So, we'll see how that plays out. Dane has had a solid camp, had a really good camp. And then Nubin just hadn't been able toas much as he's got, but he'll get that chance going forward."

View photos from the Giants' first practice following their preseason victory over the Lions.

Evan Neal was the Giants' starting right tackle in every game he played in his first two pro seasons. But that was only 22 of the team's 36 games (including the postseason), because of injuries. In 2023, Neal appeared in only seven games, the last on Nov. 5, because of an ankle injury that required a surgical repair in January.

Neal today passed his physical and was removed from the active/physical unable to perform list. He had been there – instead of on the practice field – since the start of training camp. In his absence, eight-year veteran Jermaine Eluemunor has been the first team tackle. In his initial practice this morning, Neal did not participate in the full team portions of the workout.

"I just started out doing individual drills, kind of knocking the dust off, shaking the cobwebs off, get back into it," Neal said.

When he accomplishes all that, the right tackle job might not there for him to reclaim.

"Whatever role that the team has for me, I'm going to embrace it." Neal said. "So, whether that's starting or not starting, I'm here to contribute to the team, and I'm going to do everything in my power to do so.

"I'm not owed anything, and I can't feel like I deserve anything. All I want is what I work for."

The Giants are still hoping for big things from Neal, the seventh overall selection in the 2022 NFL Draft. Last season, general manager Joe Schoen said, "Evan needs to play better."

Neal doesn't dissent.

"That's his job to evaluate the players, and if he thinks I need to play better, then hell, I'd be the first person to tell myself that I need to play better," Neal said. "So, it really doesn't matter whether it comes out of Joe's mouth or anybody's mouth. I'm always going to be the harshest critic on myself, so I need to play better. Yeah, I need to play better.

"It's a big year for me. I'm not going to sit here and act like it's not. But at the end of the day, the past two years, they weren't perfect by any means, but I feel like they were solid. They definitely weren't what I wanted them to be, but a lot of things that happened were just out of my control, just like the future, it's out of my control. I can only control the present and how I approach every single day, and that will be a big indication of my future."

View photos of every move made by the Giants during the 2024 cycle.

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