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Sterling Shepard and Evan Engram don't play the same position for the New York Giants. They worked with different position groups in OTAs, met in different position meeting rooms, and warmed up with different teammates. But, Shepard and Engram are expected to be engaged in a heated battle all throughout camp to earn the majority of snaps as Eli Manning's best receiving option in the slot.
Shepard suffered an ankle injury early in camp, but indications are that the issue is minor, and the second-year player wouldn't rule out playing in preseason games last week.
Other traditional camp battles will come down to the wire -- like Darian Thompson or Andrew Adams at safety, Adam Bisnowaty or Bobby Hart at right tackle, and D.J. Fluker or John Jerry at right guard -- but the battle to emerge as the top option in the slot carries the most important for the Giants' 2017 season outlook.
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Focus on better pass protection
For starters, the Giants will look to get an extra blocker on the field more often in 2017. In 2016, tight end Will Tye played the vast majority of snaps at tight end and graded out as one of the worst blockers at his position, per Pro Football Focus, for a second consecutive season. In addition to not having a blocking presence off tackle, the Giants lacked this on the perimeter as well. Victor Cruz, Odell Beckham Jr., and Shepard (in the slot) were all undersized as blockers in the run game.
The Giants will improve their perimeter blocking by simply swapping Brandon Marshall for Cruz, but they will also look to improve their blocking off tackle by swapping Rhett Ellison or Jerell Adams for Tye. Ellison was signed to a four-year, $18 million contract this offseason in large part due to what Giants scouts saw in him as a blocker when evaluating his game tape. Adams has prototypical size (6-foot-5, 250 pounds) and good collegiate game tape as a blocker, and he earned praise from Giants legend Carl Banks after an impressive showing in spring practices.
Keeping one of Ellison or Adams on the field means the Giants will have to choose between Engram and Shepard as the team's third receiving option.
In training camp, these two will have ample opportunities to prove that they belong on the field with Beckham, Marshall, Ellison/Adams, and Paul Perkins.
A shift in scheme
The Giants will also move away from using the 11 personnel package -- featuring three wide receivers, one tight end, and one running back -- on such a frequent basis. They used this grouping on over 90 percent of their offensive snaps in 2016. Giants tight ends coach Kevin Gilbride Jr. and tight end Matt LaCosse have both hinted that this will change in 2017. The Giants' investments at the tight end position over the past two seasons also lead us to believe changes in personnel will be coming.
Varying the personnel and adding additional blockers will allow the Giants to stay versatile on offense and keep the defense guessing. It will also allow Manning to do what he does best -- adjust the play call before the snap to a pass or run play based on what the defense is showing him.
With more two tight end personnel groupings, Shepard's snap count and usage will suffer. Marshall offers too much as a blocker on the boundary to take off the field, and Beckham never belongs on the sideline.
The slot receiver role has long been a favorite for Manning in his progressions. Manning made Steve Smith one of the NFL's most efficient slot receivers. He helped turn Victor Cruz into one of the NFL's best receivers overall during the 2011 season. That's in addition to finding varying levels of success with others who have started at the position with the Giants' franchise quarterback over his career.
Engram a versatile weapon
Even if he will be listed as a tight end, Engram will likely spend the majority of his rookie season snaps in the "big slot" role -- similar to where he played most of his snaps at Ole Miss. With that said, the Giants lined up Engram at three other positions during OTAs. Engram also took snaps in an H-back/fullback role, as the in-line tight end, and even at the flanker position. Engram's versatility might give him a slight edge on Shepard in the competition for snaps.
The Giants are also more bullish on Engram's blocking ability than the general public. Engram was praised by Giants general manager Jerry Reese for his effort on blocking at Ole Miss and that translated to OTAs in the spring.
"He shows a very much so willingness to block and to finish and strain the way we're asking our guys to strain," Giants tight ends coach Kevin Gilbride Jr. said when asked to assess Engram's blocking during minicamp. "Again, that's not pads so that'll change things to an extent, but I don't see him backing down. He has a toughness and a willingness to go against anyone on our defense and I'm hoping that remains through the course of this season."
Engram also impressed his position coach with his ability to naturally get open no matter what coverage the defense threw at him during OTAs.
"He has a good knack for it in the fact that he understands coverage and understands the leverage of the coverage, how it changes and how he needs to run his route," Gilbride said of Engram in minicamp. "He came in with that and it has continued to progress from there."
Engram started off Giants OTA practices with the third-team offense, but he quickly worked his way up. His best week of practice came during the team's three-day mandatory minicamp. Engram moved up to the first-team offense with Eli Manning and has racked up multiple touchdowns during red zone and team drills -- all from Manning. The two players are quickly developing an excellent rapport on the field.
Don't count out Shepard
Engram's development in OTAs was notable, but no offensive player put together a stronger spring than Shepard. During both OTAs and minicamp, Shepard was consistently Manning's No. 1 target and that also translated to red zone drills. In Year 2, Shepard is no longer thinking about where to be and he is practicing faster.
SportsLine projects Shepard to earn the bulk of the targets from the slot as Engram gets acclimated to the NFL in his rookie season:
| Tar | Recpt | ReYd | ReAvg | ReTD | FP* | |
| Sterling Shepard | 104 | 65 | 709 | 10.9 | 6 | 111 |
| Evan Engram | 69 | 44 | 456 | 10.4 | 3 | 63 |
There are undeniable differences between Engram and Shepard. Engram offers more size (6-foot-3 and 235 pounds vs. 5-10 and 194), speed (4.42 40-yard dash vs. 4.48), and length. Engram offers the Giants offense something they didn't have in 2016: a size/speed freak who poses a mismatch for opposing linebackers and safeties similar to that of Washington's Jordan Reed. Shepard offers the Giants experience, chemistry with his quarterback, and an abrupt quickness that perfectly fits Ben McAdoo's quick-hitting passing game.
Training camp will decide who gets the honor of joining Beckham and Marshall to lead all Giants pass catchers in snaps and routes.
