Tuesday Reading

Giants

Traina Inside Football: New York Giants Reader Mailbag: Sam Beal, Offensive Line and More
�Beal�s compensation should match where he was selected had he been chosen in the spring. So in the Giants case, I believe, as per this chart, Beal�s deal will be the equivalent of the 66th overall pick in the draft (which was the first of the Giants� two third-rounders)�a 4-year, $3.5M package.�
https://insidefootball.com/new-york-giants-reader-mailbag-sam-beal-offensive-line-and-more/

QB

Giants.com: QB Davis Webb out to prove himself to new regime
https://www.giants.com/news/qb-davis-webb-out-to-prove-himself-to-new-regime

Giants.com: Giants Insider: QB Davis Webb
Second-year QB Davis Webb chats with Giants.com about his outlook and expectations for 2018 (Video)
https://www.giants.com/video/giants-insider-qb-davis-webb

RB

Schmeelk Giants.com: Rookie Preview Report: RB Saquon Barkley
https://www.giants.com/news/rookie-preview-report-rb-saquon-barkley

WR

Dunleavy NJ.com: Lawrence Taylor on Odell Beckham: Should Giants extend his contract? What WR needs to show next?
https://articles.nj.com/giants/index.ssf/2018/07/lawrence_taylor_on_odell_beckham_should_giants_ext.amp

OL

Traina The Athletic: Giants training camp positional preview: offensive line
https://theathletic.com/420542/2018/07/16/giants-training-camp-positional-preview-offensive-line/

Thompson SNY: Will these 'Hog Mollies' transform the Giants' O-line in 2018?
https://www.sny.tv/giants/news/will-these-hog-mollies-transform-the-giants-o-line-in-2018/286093700

DL

Traina The Athletic: Giants training camp positional preview: defensive line
https://theathletic.com/422075/2018/07/17/new-york-giants-training-camp-preview-defensive-line/

LB

Lombardo NJ.com: s Alec Ogletree best Giants' linebacker in years? Can rookie Lorenzo Carter crack starting lineup? | LB Position preview
https://www.nj.com/giants/index.ssf/2018/07/how_do_giants_linebackers_grade_heading_into_train.html


NFL

SI MMQB: The Definitive Guide to Each and Every NFL Owner
https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/nfl-owners-guide-32-teams-franchises

Seifert ESPN: NFL continues to tinker with changes to kickoff
http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/24115813/nfl-considering-more-minor-kickoff-changes

ARIZONA
AZ Central: Countdown to Cardinals camp: Coach Steve Wilks on his football influences
https://amp.azcentral.com/amp/787014002

ATLANTA
Ledbetter AJC: Julio Jones attends workout with Matt Ryan
https://www.myajc.com/sports/football/julio-jones-attends-workout-with-matt-ryan/7RReVg3ibcj13rqrv7M3gO/

Ledbetter AJC: Atlanta Falcons� 90-man roster analysis: Running backs
https://www.ajc.com/sports/football/atlanta-falcons-man-roster-analysis-running-backs/1mhG8ExjNYMqe1qE7MlIGN/

BALTIMORE
Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley)
7/16/18, 4:59 PM
Ravens place six players on PUP to start camp: G Marshal Yanda, DE Brent Urban, tight end Vince Mayle, CB Jaylen Hill, LB Bam Bradley and WR Quincy Adeboyejo. It's an expected precautionary measure with Yanda, who is coming off a season-ending ankle injury.

BUFFALO
Gaughan Buffalo News: Bills Training Camp Question 4: How fast can 20-year-old Edmunds become fulcrum of defense?
https://buffalonews.com/2018/07/16/training-camp-question-4-how-fast-can-a-20-year-old-become-fulcrum-of-defense/

CAROLINA
Rodrigue Charlotte Observer: Can a healthy 2018 Panthers receiving corps can be a 180-degree flip from 2017?
http://amp.charlotteobserver.com/sports/nfl/carolina-panthers/article214982375.html

CHICAGO
Biggs Chicago Tribune: Roquan Smith unsigned as Bears rookies report to training camp
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-spt-bears-roquan-smith-contract-unsigned-20180716-story.html

CLEVELAND
Gribble Browns.com: Browns 2018 training camp preview: Analyzing the QBs
https://www.clevelandbrowns.com/news/browns-2018-training-camp-preview-analyzing-the-qbs

Cabot Cleveland Plain Dealer: Cleveland Browns Training Camp 2018: Linebacker preview
https://www.cleveland.com/expo/sports/erry-2018/07/c8c5c124828471/cleveland-browns-training-camp.html

DALLAS
Hill Fort Worth Star Telegram: Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence prepared to play under tag, franchise deadline non-issue
http://amp.star-telegram.com/sports/nfl/dallas-cowboys/article214944075.html

DETROIT
Stoia Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions president: We're looking at Ford Field retractable roof
https://amp.freep.com/amp/789284002

Birkett Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions 2018 most important: No. 1 Matthew Stafford holds key
https://amp.freep.com/amp/789049002

Monarrez Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions' Ziggy Ansah doesn't get long-term contract extension
https://amp.freep.com/amp/789245002

Rogers Detroit News: Health, scheme are key components for Lions' Ansah
https://amp.detroitnews.com/amp/788829002

GREEN BAY
Rovell ESPN: Packers' books show that NFL distributed more than $8 billion
http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/24114332/green-bay-packers-books-show-team-got-255m-revenue-sharing

INDIANAPOLIS
Walker Colts.com: �Tough, Instinctive� Zaire Franklin Has Intriguing Tools At Linebacker For Colts
https://www.colts.com/news/tough-instinctive-zaire-franklin-has-intriguing-tools-at-linebacker-for-colts

JACKSONVILLE
Kaye WTLV Jacksonville: JAGUARS TRAINING CAMP POSITION PREVIEW: THE LOCKS, THE LIKELY AND THE LONG SHOTS AT OFFENSIVE TACKLE
https://www.firstcoastnews.com/article/sports/nfl/jacksonville-jaguars/jaguars-training-camp-position-preview-the-locks-the-likely-and-the-long-shots-at-offensive-tackle/77-571789120

Reid Florida Times Union: Jaguars Position Previews: Lambo continues to exemplify consistency
http://www.jacksonville.com/sports/20180716/jaguars-position-previews-lambo-continues-to-exemplify-consistency?

KANSAS CITY
Kerkhoff KC Star: Leadership? Chiefs� Mahomes has it. But real-time NFL experience will take a while
http://amp.kansascity.com/sports/nfl/kansas-city-chiefs/article214989780.html

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS
Henne Chargers.com: 2018 Training Camp Preview: Wide Receivers
https://www.chargers.com/news/2018-training-camp-preview-wide-receivers

LOS ANGELES RAMS
Klein LA Times: Rams safety Lamarcus Joyner will play 2018 season under franchise tag
http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-joyner-franchise-tag-20180716-story.html

MIAMI
Perkins Sun Sentinel: Countdown to camp: Dolphins have a lot of cornerbacks, but do they have starting-caliber CBs?
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-dolphins/fl-sp-dolphins-countdown2-20180717-story.html

MINNESOTA
Krammer Minn Star Tribune: Vikings linebacker question: Who will start with Kendricks and Barr?
http://m.startribune.com/2018-camp-preview-could-another-young-vikings-linebacker-grab-playing-time/488265811/

NEW ENGLAND
McBride Boston Globe: The time Randy Moss hung up on Bill Belichick
https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/patriots/2018/07/16/the-time-randy-moss-hung-bill-belichick/QuaajzzkibkBdyOsAxpdCJ/amp.html

Reiss ESPN Boston: Sony Michel adds exciting layer to Patriots' RB corps
http://www.espn.com/blog/new-england-patriots/post/_/id/4813974/sony-michel-adds-exciting-layer-to-patriots-rb-corps

Thomas Forbes.com: Patriots' Danny Shelton, Malcom Brown A Talented Tandem With An Expiration Date
https://www.forbes.com/sites/oliverthomas/2018/07/16/patriots-danny-shelton-malcom-brown-a-talented-tandem-with-an-expiration-date/amp/

NEW ORLEANS
Holder Nola.com: New Orleans Saints 2018 roster rankings: No. 5 Alvin Kamara
https://articles.nola.com/saints/index.ssf/2018/07/new_orleans_saints_2018_roster_15.amp

Miller B/R: Michael Thomas Is Ready to Emerge as One of the NFL's Best Players in 2018
https://syndication.bleacherreport.com/amp/2785964-michael-thomas-is-ready-to-emerge-as-one-of-the-nfls-best-players-in-2018.amp.html

Erickson NO Advocate: Saints defensive linemen Mitchell Loewen drew on prior experience while helping save injured driver Sunday
https://www.theadvocate.com/new_orleans/sports/saints/article_ac94b7fc-8950-11e8-babc-b7a7a8fbca71.html

OAKLAND
RudyMartzke2018 (@FakeRudyMartzke)
7/16/18, 11:18 PM
Brent Musburger agreed to terms on a 2-year deal with Compass Media to call games on the radio for the entire football season for the Oakland Raiders. His first season will be in Oakland and then to Las Vegas to call Las Vegas Raider games on the radio.

Raiders.com: Oakland Raiders' Position Battles: Linebackers
https://www.raiders.com/news/oakland-raiders-position-battles-linebackers

PHILADELPHIA
Kempski Phillyvoice: Eagles training camp preview: Tight end
https://www.phillyvoice.com/eagles-training-camp-preview-tight-end-2018/amp/

PITTSBURGH
Fittipaldo Pittsburgh Post Gazette: Le'Veon Bell and the Steelers failed to agree yet again, setting up his exit after 2018
http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/07/16/leveon-bell-contract-update-nfl-franchise-tag-rules/stories/201807160117

Orr MMQB: If Le'Veon Bell Can't Secure a Long-Term Contract, What RB Can?
https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/07/16/leveon-bell-steelers-contract-franchise-tag

Cook Pittsburgh Post Gazette: It's not surprising but disappointing that Le'Veon Bell and Steelers failed to reach a deal
http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/ron-cook/2018/07/16/Ron-Cook-It-s-not-surprising-but-disappointing-that-Le-Veon-Bell-and-Steelers-failed-to-reach-a-deal-Ben-Roethlisberger-Antonio-Brown-Jerome-Bettis-franchise-tag/stories/201807170030

Fittipaldo Pittsburgh Post Gazette: Is Le'Veon Bell's replacement on the roster? Time to find out.
http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers/2018/07/16/leveon-bell-contract-steelers-depth-chart-rb-jaylen-samuels-james-conner/stories/201807160131

Rutter Pittsburgh Tribune Review: Steelers training camp preview: All eyes on Watt-Dupree position swap at outside linebacker
https://triblive.com/sports/steelers/13873054-74/steelers-training-camp-preview-all-eyes-on-watt-dupree-position-swap-at-outside

Benz Pittsburgh Tribune Review: Can Sean Davis be the free safety the Steelers seek?
https://triblive.com/sports/columnists/timbenz/breakfastwithbenz/13871172-74/tim-benz-can-sean-davis-be-the-free-safety-the-steelers-seek

SAN FRANCISCO
Fann 49ers.com: Robert Saleh is Bullish on the 49ers Pass Rush in 2018
https://www.49ers.com/news/robert-saleh-is-bullish-on-the-49ers-pass-rush-in-2018

SEATTLE
Arthur Seattle PI: Does Seattle Seahawks safety Earl Thomas want to be traded?
https://www.seattlepi.com/sports/seahawks/amp/Does-the-Seahawks-Earl-Thomas-want-to-be-traded-13080292.php

TAMPA BAY
Auman TB Times: What DeSean Jackson needs to break a Jerry Rice NFL record
https://www.tampabay.com/blogs/bucs/2018/07/16/what-desean-jackson-needs-to-break-a-jerry-rice-nfl-record/?

TENNESSEE
Wyatt Titans.com: Training Camp Preview: Breaking Down the Tight End Position for Titans
https://www.titansonline.com/news/training-camp-preview-breaking-down-the-tight-end-position-for-titans

Wyatt Titans.com: Training Camp Preview: Breaking Down the Offensive Line Position for Titans
https://www.titansonline.com/news/training-camp-preview-breaking-down-the-offensive-line-position-for-titans

WASHINGTON
Copeland Washington Post: Redskins� secondary churn produces optimism as training camp creeps closer
https://www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/football-insider/wp/2018/07/16/redskins-secondary-churn-produces-optimism-as-training-camp-creeps-closer/

Draft

QB
Gabriel PFW: Greg Gabriel's early 2019 NFL Draft breakdown: Auburn QB Jarrett Stidham
http://amp.profootballweekly.com/articles/2018/07/16/c3303865c4674fc9861bb36a5f08e88e/

Former Giants News

Elman Palm Beach Post: Ex-Dolphins Jason Taylor, Sam Madison stress safe way to play football
https://www.palmbeachpost.com/sports/football/dolphins-jason-taylor-sam-madison-stress-safe-way-play-football/aQoJo1EglCULctQ4ZNgw8M/amp.html

History

Giants Ring of Honor: Of Missing Persons
Part 3: Jimmy Patton

Who is in the Giants Ring of Honor
https://www.bigblueinteractive.com/information-pages/new-york-giants-ring-of-honor/

Candidates to consider:

Jimmy Patton
1955-1966

5x All Pro 1958-1962
5x Pro Bowl 1958-1962

Led the NFL with 12 interceptions in 1958

1955

Players with touchdowns on kick return and punt return

Jimmy Patton, New York Giants vs. Washington Redskins, Oct. 30, 1955
Score: Giants 35, Redskins 7
Kickoff Return for TD: 98 yards in 1st Quarter
Punt Return for TD: 69 yards in 4th quarter
Notable: Patton was a rookie with the Giants in 1955. He returned the opening kickoff 98 yards to set the pace of the game. The punt return was the first of his NFL career.
http://www.profootballhof.com/news/a-nfl-rarity-and-1st-on-kickoff-weekend/

1957

3Int 50yds 1TD

1958

11Int 183yds

1959

Profiles: Jim Patton and Dick Nolan
JIM PATTON
Safety
No. 20
Mississippi
"One of the NFL's fastest defensive backs, Jim topped the league in pass interceptions in '58. He won a reputation as a defensive star at Ole Miss. He once ran 9.9 in college, where Coach Howell first spotted him.
Jim lives in Belzoni, Mississippi."

-Pro Football Handbook 1959

"Jim Patton, the Giants Johnny-on-the-spot, picked off a high of 11 opponent tosses to establish himself as the premier individual pass-harasser. He ran the interceptions back for 183 yards, a 16.6 average."

-Pro Football Handbook 1959

WHO SAYS JIM IS LITTLE? His stature as a safety makes up for whatever height Jim Patton of the Giants lacks.
"No pro gridder likes to be called 'small' or 'little.' This is probably because club owners and coaches reject players who fail to meet minimum physical standards.
The moniker of 'little,' so often seen and heard in conjunction with the Giants' safety man, Jimmy Patton, is obviously a term of affection as well as a kind of tribute to his great performances in spite of his middling size (5-10, 180). In one way, Patton is the biggest man in the league; he led all interceptors in '58 with a record-making 11, running the ball back for a total of 183 yards (including a 42-yard run). This tied Patton and Otto Schnellbacker (1951) for the Giants' all-time single-season record.
Jim showed his real stature as a player way back in his rookie season, five years ago, in a game against Washington when he received the opening kickoff for a memorable return of 98 yards for a touchdown. The experts calculate that the odds are 165 to 1 against running back the kickoff, and 98 to 1 against a punt being reversed all the way. No odds exist for one man doing it in a single game.
The Belzoni, Mississippi safety man has shown steady development as a valuable man. There was that memorable day in '56 when the Giants met the Bears for the league title. Patton was assigned to police Harlon Hill, who was then at his peak. Hill, a 6-3 handful for any safety or halfback, did no scoring that day as the Giants swept on to the title.
A highlight of Patton's '57 season was the three interceptions he made- all in one game- returning the ball for a total of 50 yards.
Now, heading into his fifth year with the Giants, Jimmy promises no 'little' amount of trouble for the opposition."

-Murray Olderman, Sports All-Stars 1959 Pro Football

5Int 13yds

1960 Time Magazine: Playing Safety

�The job of playing safety in the National Football League requires almost as many athletic skills as winning the decathlon. Ideally, the safety man must have the speed of a sprinter to keep up with whippet-fast backs and ends as they break for passes. He must have the wit to diagnose plays in advance, the instinct to follow them as they unfold. He must have the strength and guts to hurl himself head-on at a 230-lb. fullback. And he must learn to live with the chilling reality that as the last line of defense, every time he makes a mistake the enemy gets six points. In the N.F.L., the safety man who comes closest to achieving the impossible is the New York Giants' squarejawed, sturdy (5 ft. 10 in., 180 Ibs.) Jimmy Patton.

An all-round star at the University of Mississippi, Patton was drafted by the Giants in 1955 for defensive work. He soon realized that he knew next to nothing about the game of football as it is played by the pros�and he learned the hard way. Pro ball carriers knocked him cold time and again. Not until histhird year did he really begin to solve pass patterns and develop into a star. This season, at 28, Jimmy Patton is an articulate, confident craftsman who is recognized throughout the National Football League as the safety man who has mastered every trickof the trade.

Method for Mayhem. "When a fullback like Jimmy Brown of the Cleveland Browns breaks loose up the middle." says Patton in discussing the science of the safety man, "I don't watch his head. He can fake me with his head. I watch his belt buckle, and I keep my eye on it, just the way a batter watches a baseball. He can't wiggle that belt buckle. I get down low enough to get below his shoulder and try to hit him headon. It's easy enough to get to Brown's belly. Holding on to him is another matter. A fullback like Brown can spin you right over, but I can usually manage to hold on to something.

"A breakaway runner like Bobby Mitchell of the Browns or Hugh McElhenny of the San Francisco Forty Niners really gives me fits. You've got to beat their blockers, and then you've got to watch out for their fakes. Mitchell has literally faked me off my feet. It's too risky to tackle them low. I hit them high and wrestle them down. It's not the way you're taught in college, and it's not pretty�but it's effective."

Minuet for Two. Pass defense is the crucial job for a safety man. Although he has run 100 yds. in 9.9 sec., Patton does not consider himself a fast man by pro. standards. For the sake of speed, Patton wears no hip pads, makes do with a piece of sponge rubber over each hipbone. With the rest of the famed Giant defensive unit. Patton has studied his opponents' attacking habits thoroughly. Patton knows that the fine blocking of the Baltimore Colts will give Quarterback Johnny Unitas four seconds or more to pass; he knows too that the St. Louis Cardinals' much beset King Hill is lucky to get three seconds. Patton knows that the Colts' Lenny Moore will tip off the fact that he is going deep for apass by shuffling through his first few steps, and he knows that the Los Angeles Rams' Del Shofner starts at top speed when he is the deep man.

But receivers are equally familiar with Patton's habits. After calling defensive signals for the Giants' backfield, Patton lines up about 7 yds. away from the man he intends to cover, always shading to one side so that the receiver will have only one clear path. At the snap of the ball, the two men start a routine as formal yet as frantic as a minuet in oldtime flicker films. Running backward all the while, Patton must counter the receiver's maneuvers without falling for a fake. To avoid head, arm and hip fakes. Patton watches a spot roughly in the vicinity of the receiver's wishbone, on the sound theory that it will turn when the receiver himself turns and begins to cut. "Then," says Patton, "you've got to react fast. If he gets more than one step on you, you'll never catch him."

Moment for Instinct. Patton has developed his peripheral vision to the point where he can often watch the quarterback while also watching a receiver, or. failing that, catch sight of the ball in mid-air as it approaches. With other stars, like the Cardinals' Bill Stacy and the Colts' Andy Nelson, Patton has a sixth sense that alerts him when the ball is headed for another receiver. "There is that special moment when it is time to go for the ball and instinct takes over," says Jack

Christiansen, a defensive coach for San Francisco. "In that moment, great football players are made."

A game always leaves Patton so taut that he has long given up any thoughts of sleep for that night. With Dick Nolan, the Giants' other safety man, Patton often stalks the deserted streets of Manhattan until dawn. But he makes a special point not to brood about any opposition receiver who got away for a touchdown. "If I could stop every pass," says the Giants' Jimmy Patton, "no one could afford to pay my salary."

6Int 100yds

1961

�Jimmy Patton is the dean of professional safety men and a tutor as well as a leader. The little Mississippian acts as a roving ambassador on the New York Giants' last line of defense.
The Giants have been calling Jimmy Patton the finest secondary defender in football for so long that it's almost taken for granted. In New York's defensive pattern he plays a roving safety, which means that he is supposed to ferret out the direction of a play so as to augment the coverage in other zones. This is no job for a novice. Done right, it gives the Giants the best defense in the league, putting an extra man at every point of attack. Done wrong, it exposes them to a long gainer because a New York player has missed an assignment.
Statistics show Patton's effectiveness, for in a season where the team slipped to third place the defense, as he points out, was first against the rush and tied for first against the pass.
Jimmy takes more than individual pride in the achievement of the defense. He is one of the Giant coaches, in charge of the secondary. This dates from the beginning of last season, when Tom Landry vacated, leaving Harland Svare as the defensive strategist. Swede, playing linebacker, turned to Robustelli for help on the line and Jimmy in the deep spots.
Patton wasn't born to the job he performs. He's smaller than the average defender in the NFL. The Giants used to flinch every time he hurled his 180 pounds fearlessly into the path of a 230-pound fullback. It got so Jimmy would average a KO a game, but he kept coming back for more. To prolong his career, coach Howell finally insisted that Jimmy start making those tackles from the side.
At Mississippi, where he was one of the greatest defensive backs in Southeastern Conference history, Jimmy also ran the 100 in 9.9. When he joined the Giants in 1955 he put that speed to use returning punts and kickoffs. In one game, he gathered in a punt on his 30-yard line and sped the remaining 70 yards for a touchdown. Then he took a kickoff on his 2 and zipped 98 for another touchdown.
When a speedster like Bobby Mitchell or Hugh McElhenny breaks into the open, Patton doesn't go for the low, picture-book tackle. 'It's too risky,' he says. 'I hit them high and wrestle them down. It's not the way you're taught in college and it's not pretty- but it's effective.'
He has even learned to cope with bulldozers like Jimmy Brown, who could normally trample him. 'I watch his belt buckle,' says Patton, 'like batter watches the baseball; he can't wiggle his belt buckle. I try to hit him below the shoulder. Holding is another matter, though, because Jimmy can spin right over you. I usually manage to hold on to something.'
Because of Jimmy's ability to dog a receiver, the quarterbacks of the NFL have learned to shy away from his coverage zones, particularly after he led the league with 11 interceptions in 1958. Still, as a roving safety for the Giant defense, he's a threat on every ball thrown into the air."

8Int 163yds 1TD

1962

7Int 125yds

11-04-1963 Maule SI: WINNING TOOK A GIANT ADJUSTMENT

The secret was an adjustment by Giant Coach Allie Sherman, a defensive adjustment dictated by the success of the Brown attack in the first game between the teams. The problem, of course, was how to contain Jimmy Brown, and Sherman took a calculated risk by changing the play of his linebackers. Instead of dropping off the line of scrimmage, looking for the pass before they reacted to the run, on Sunday they played Brown tight, getting to him before he could clear the line of scrimmage.

"We could have been hurt if Ryan had thrown behind our linebackers," said Jim Patton, the Giant safety man. "But we were getting such good pressure on Ryan that he didn't have time to throw."

The 84,000 Clevelanders were quiet for good reason. The first time Brown carried the ball, it was raked out of his arms by Giant Tackle John LoVetere, and Sam Huff pounced on it. The Giants got a field goal out of this Brown bumble, and 25 seconds later they had their first touchdown after a beautiful play by Patton, who cut across in front of Cleveland End John Brewer to intercept a pass on the Browns' 35.
This interception was the result of a tremendous rush by the Giant line that kept Ryan in difficulty all afternoon. Andy Robustelli, who plays defensive end for the Giants and calls their defensive plays, sent his linebackers in after the Cleveland quarterbacks on a variety of blitzes. The Brown blockers often picked up the penetrating linebackers, but they overlooked the tackles and ends. Jim Katcavage, in particular, had a wonderful afternoon thumping Ryan to the ground.�

6Int 46yds

FROM THE DELTA TO THE BIG APPLE: Jimmy Patton
http://nflfootballjournal.blogspot.com/2017/09/from-delta-to-big-apple-jimmy-patton.html

1972
NYT: JIMMY PATTON, dies at 39; EX& #8208;STAR OF GIANTS
�Drafted by the Giants in 1955, the former University of Mississippi star contributed a couple of memorable returns in his rookie National Football League season. Against the Washington Redskins, he ran back a kickoff 98 yards for touchdown and returned a punt 70 yards for another score.

But it took Patton a couple of seasons to master the fine art of pass defense. He was knocked cold time and again by muscular opponents who out weighed him 50 pounds or more. In his third season, he began& #8208;developing into a stand out player.

To increase his speed, Patton woreno hip pads. But he did a lot of heavy thinking to make up for his small size. Discuss ing his role as safetyman, Pat ton once said: �When a full back like Jimmy Brown of the Cleveland Browns breaks loose up the middle, I don't watch his head. He can fake me with his head. I watch his belt buckle and I keep my eye on it, just the way a batter watches a baseball. He can't wiggle that belt buckle.�

A highly developed periph eral vision helped Patton keep up with fast& #8208;breaking ends and backs as they cut for passes. Somehow, he was often able to keep one eye on the quarter back and the other on a pass receiver.

Patton used to say he liked to watch a spot roughly in the vicinity of a receiver's wish bone, on the theory that it would turn when the receiver began to turn in his pass pat tern. As safetyman, Patton knew, he represented the last line of defense.

After the 1959 season, Pat ton was excused from kickoff returns and punt& #8208;return duty, concentrating exclusively on de fense. He gave it 100 per cent, and then some. The pressure of knocking heads with bigger players would leave him so taut after a game that he rarely could sleep that night. He often roamed the streets of Manhat tan until dawn with Dick Nolan, me team's other safetyman.

As scientific as he was in his approach to pass defense, Pat ton didn't expect himself to be perfect. �If I could stop every pass,� he once said, �no one could afford to pay my salary.�

Giants Birthdays 7-17

Stevie Brown SS/FS W-IND 2012 NYG 2012-2014 7-17-1987

Bill Crawford G UDFA-British Columbia NYG 1960 7-17-1937

Steve Wright RT TR-GB 1968 NYG 1968-1969 7-17-1942