What to Watch for in New York Giants' Preseason Week 1 Matchup

At long last, the NFL drought is about to come to an end Friday when the Pittsburgh Steelers come to town to officially kick off the New York Giants' 2017 preseason.

While Ben McAdoo has already hinted that neither Eli Manning nor Odell Beckham Jr. will play in this game—the Giants head coach told reporters Wednesday he will probably follow a similar plan to 2016, when he sat his two most valuable pieces on offense—there is still plenty to watch in terms of position battles, new faces and much more.

Let's break down some of the key things that are sure to be topics of discussion leading up to and after the game.

The Backup Quarterbacks

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

While Manning is likely to sit for the preseason opener, the three quarterbacks behind him on the depth chart will get their moments in the sun.

If McAdoo follows the plan he had in place last year, the likely scenario will see Josh Johnson and Geno Smith, who unofficially has a slight edge over Johnson based on the practices thus far, taking turns to run the offense for the majority of the game.

Don't forget about Davis Webb, though. After having his practice reps limited to the 7-on-7 "opportunity" part of practice McAdoo created this year, the rookie got to run some 11-on-11 drills toward the end of Wednesday's practice during the portion in which the coach lays out a specific scenario and challenges the offense to score and the defense to make a stop.

Webb and the offense came up short in their quest to tie the game, but the 22-year-old did extend the scoring drive by connecting with receiver Jerome Lane on a fourth-quarter comeback route.

Webb, who said he doesn't yet know how many reps McAdoo has planned for him to take, is looking forward to the opportunity.

"I've gotten every rep this entire training camp," he said. "Mentally I've been tuned in, I've been asking questions in meetings, I'm watching the play progress and going through my reads back there. I might not be throwing it, but mentally I'm throwing it.

"Physically, it was my first time today in a team setting, but I feel good. I feel ready to go, and once my chance comes, I'll be ready to go and that's Friday night. So, I'm excited."

The Offensive Line

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

Not a day seems to go by when the Giants offensive line isn't on the minds of concerned fans, who are holding their collective breath in the hopes the unit is finally going to play more cohesively.

We might not get the answer in one preseason game, not unless McAdoo keeps the entire starting unit of Ereck Flowers, Justin Pugh, Weston Richburg, John Jerry and Bobby Hart in there for more than just a couple of series.

What we will be able to see, based on a handful of snaps that unit is expected to get, will be any improvement made in run-blocking, which was a problem for last year’s 29th-ranked run offense.

We will also see any improvement made by Flowers and Hart, both of whom stayed in East Rutherford to train under the watchful eye of Giants strength and conditioning coach Aaron Wellman.

The Deployment of the New Guys on Offense

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

The Giants offense received enough of a makeover via the additions of veterans such as receiver Brandon Marshall and tight end Rhett Ellison, and the drafting of tight end Evan Engram, to change the complexion of a unit that finished 25th overall last season after placing in the top 10 the year prior.

Although Manning is unlikely to play on Friday, the world will get its first look at these new additions and how they might be deployed in the offense.

Of interest will be which personnel packages the Giants use in the red zone to bolster their touchdown-conversion rate inside the opponent's 20-yard line, a statistic in which they finished 29th last year.

Thus far, the Giants have made use of Engram—their No. 1 pick this year—and big-bodied receiver Marshall in the red zone with some success.  

They have also "re-introduced" play action into the offense after moving away from it last year (largely due to personnel deficiencies).

With Beckham unlikely to play Friday, Marshall may see some of those pass targets resulting from play action.

The Cornerback Depth

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

The Giants' backup cornerback spot doesn't get talked about as much as it probably should.

It's a key positional battle, though, as behind slot cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and starters Janoris Jenkins and Eli Apple, there is uncertainty on the depth chart.

The Giants ideally would like to add one more true outside cornerback—Michael Hunter, who was with the team for part of the season last year, appears to be that guy—and a backup slot cornerback.

The backup slot cornerback is where the battle is taking shape. Will it be Donte Deayon—who thus far has been working mostly with the second-string defense—or veteran Valentino Blake, who signed in the offseason to offer insurance and a veteran presence at a critical position?

The Rookies

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Earlier, I mentioned the Giants' first-round pick, Engram, and its third-rounder, Webb.

There are four other rookie draft picks and a handful of undrafted free agents the coaching staff no doubt plan to take a long look at in this game as well.

On offense, running back Wayne Gallman, the fourth-round pick, and undrafted free agents such as tackle Chad Wheeler and receiver Travis Rudolph are among those who are likely to get extended playing time.

On defense, linemen Avery Moss and Dalvin Tomlinson, both draft picks, are probably going to receive a lot of snaps.

Undrafted free-agent linebacker Calvin Munson, who has looked good in camp so far, is in line for a larger piece of the pie in the middle, with Keenan Robinson (concussion) and Mark Herzlich (stinger) both unlikely to play Friday night.

The Kickers

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

In case you missed the news, the Giants added veteran kicker Mike Nugent to compete with the relatively untested Aldrick Rosas for the kicking job.

Thus far, Nugent has been perfect on field-goal attempts in camp, while Rosas missed one in Wednesday's practice, although that did come on a poor snap and hold.  

Besides looking at scoring, the Giants will no doubt want to get a feel for how each player does on kickoffs, an area that has been more controlled to set up returns and blocking schemes during practice.

Patricia Traina covers the New York Giants for Inside Football, the Journal Inquirer and Sports Xchange. All quotes and information were obtained firsthand unless otherwise sourced.