Everything you need to know about the Giants' 2017 Rookie Minicamp:
Scouts scour the country 200 days a year to get to this week.
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With the dust settled on the 2017 NFL Draft, the Giants' six newest selections, along with dozens of undrafted free agents and tryout players, report Thursday for a three-day rookie minicamp at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center. After orientation, which includes everything from equipment fitting to headshots and physicals, they hit the field for the first time together. They do so not as Rebels, Crimson Tide products, Golden Bears, Tigers, Penguins or Panthers – but as New York Football Giants.
It doesn't matter what they've done. It matters what they do now when they get in front of their coaches, both on the field and in the film room.
For Ben McAdoo, this will be his second go-round as head coach. His goal is to acclimate them into the system as much as possible before throwing them in the deep end with the veterans, who are looking to build on an 11-2 season and a first-round exit last postseason.
"We have made some adjustments [from last year], but again, the most important thing is that there are a lot of nerves involved early on in that process," McAdoo said. "So you want to make sure that you take them out early, give them a chance to walk through some things, jog through some things before you actually practice with them because there are a lot of nerves."
On Friday, the fun really begins. That's when the first practice will be held. McAdoo, offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, and players will also meet with the media.
"It feels good when [the draft is] over, but it's not over because we have all these undrafted free agents," vice president of player evaluation Marc Ross said of the post-draft process. "Got to start attacking, and this is really the fun part right now. Everything else was structured and easy; this process is very hectic."
Meanwhile, the veterans have been moving along in their offseason workout program, which began April 18. Here is a look at some key dates to keep in mind:
Rookie Minicamp: May 12-14
OTA Offseason Workouts: May 22-23, May 25, May 30-31, June 2, June 5-6, June 8-9
Mandatory Minicamp: June 13-15
Each club's official, voluntary nine-week offseason program is conducted in three phases:
• Phase One (completed) consists of the first two weeks of the program with activities limited to strength and conditioning and physical rehabilitation only.
• Phase Two (currently underway) consists of the next three weeks of the program. On-field workouts may include individual player instruction and drills as well as team practice conducted on a "separates" basis. No live contact or team offense vs. team defense drills are permitted.
• Phase Three consists of the next four weeks of the program. Teams may conduct a total of 10 days of organized team practice activity (OTAs). No live contact is permitted, but 7-on-7, 9-on-7, and 11-on-11 drills are permitted.
