Head Coach Ben McAdoo
April 26, 2016
Glad you could all make it today. It’s good to get back out here on the field. Third week of the offseason program, so we really just got out here and knocked the rust off a little bit, getting the guys orientated to the way we’re going to go about the business and we’ll build on it each day. We’ll do a little bit more tomorrow, a little bit more on Thursday and off we go. With that, we’ll open up to questions.
Q: What are the keys to going about your business?
A: We want to train the way we play and that’s key. We’re going to start each day working on fundamentals, whether it’s taking care of the Duke… We’ll have a period of blocking and tackling every day and we’ll have a period of taking care of the football.
Q: How important is it at this point to establish a level of accountability among your players?
A: Accountability is something that obviously starts with me and ends with me, but it’s something that we want to build throughout the locker room as well. We want to have guys hold each other accountable for their actions. It’s good to have a solid locker room there and we think we’re off to a good start.
Q: What’s the progress report on Victor Cruz?
A: He looks good. He’s moving around. He’s doing a lot of things. He’s certainly ready to go if we needed him to go today, but he’s going to go when we deem him ready to go.
Q: How would you classify his progress?
A: Victor has come a long way and we’re going to take small steps with him. It’s the third week of the offseason program. We don’t want to rush into anything there. We want to take our time and when he’s ready to go, we’ll put him back out there when we deem him ready to go.
Q: How much can you talk about the progress of Jason Pierre-Paul’s hand?
A: Today was just a jog-through. It’s good to have him here in the offseason program. That’s a great start. Being the third week into it, we’ll have to see. We’ll have to get out there and we’ll have to do some offense vs. defense where he has a chance to work and do those types of things, but he’s already ahead of the game compared to last year.
Q: It looked like he was wearing a different type of glove. Is that something new?
A: That’s something you’d have to talk with him about.
Q: How do you approach these mini-camps?
A: 2005 and 2006, I was a part of one, but the rules have changed a little bit since then. Being the third week of the offseason program, the beginning of the third week, we want to be smart. We haven’t had a chance to be out here working with them on the field, so we want to take small steps and build a good foundation. We knocked the rust off today and will do a little bit more as we go.
Q: Did you see the energy and enthusiasm you were expecting from the team today?
A: The building has been buzzing here for a few weeks, and the guys are excited to get back and get going. I think you felt that out here a little bit today. It was a good first day. We didn’t do much out here other than train the fundamentals. We didn’t do any offense or any defense, but the guys were into it. It’s the first day. We have to keep it up.
Q: Have Mykkele Thompson and Nat Berhe been cleared to participating normally?
A: They go as we go.
Q: How much have you had to change going from offensive coordinator to head coaching?
A: I haven’t changed at all. I’m going to be myself. I’m comfortable in my own skin and that’s how I approach it.
Q: Did you find yourself at times on the field recognizing that you’re the head coach of the New York Giants?
A: When practice started, I was looking for something to do. But I think that’s pretty natural in the grand scheme of things. I have a chance to get around the defense a little bit more and really the positions other than the quarterback a little bit more than I have in the past two years. That’s exciting for me.
Q: So you found something to do?
A: I did. I found something to do and I’ll find plenty more.
Q: What have these past few weeks getting ready for the draft been like for you?
A: It’s been a little bit different. My involvement in the draft is complete. Now it’s offense, defense and special teams. Responsibility is there. It’s something that I’m enjoying the process and I have an opportunity to give some input. That’s exciting. But my main job and my main role is to coach the team, and that’s what I’ll do, first and foremost.
Q: Who picks the soundtrack for practice?
A: That’s Ed Triggs. He does a great job dialing up some great music for us and making sure we keep it at the right rating, which is a challenge sometimes. He does a great job of mixing it in. We like to have a little something for everybody out here.
Q: Is Victor Cruz ready?
A: Victor is out here. He’s running routes. He’s working hard. He feels he’s 100 percent, but we’re going to take it slow and we’re going to take small steps with him. When we deem him ready, we’ll put him on the field.
Q: Has your relationship with Eli changed?
A: No.
