With the Giants reporting to training camp Wednesday, here’s a primer of the biggest issues:
Biggest comeback
Odell. Odell Beckham. Odell Beckham, Jr. OBJ. Superstar wide receiver. Bleached blond hair. Tattoos galore. Shirt-wearing optional. Rubs elbows with all sorts of celebrities. Played in only four games last season, coming off surgery to repair fractured left ankle. Wants a new, massive, multi-year contract. Deserves it. Looked great in limited action this spring. Now 25, coming back to prove he is fully healthy and warrants a new deal as franchise face.
Biggest position battle
Darian Thompson started all 16 games last season at free safety but by no means has anything locked up this time around. This is a new coaching regime and the general manager (Jerry Reese) who made him a third-round pick in 2016 is gone, as well. Thompson came out of Boise State reputed to be a rangy ball-hawk, but other than opening eyes early in his rookie year before he went down with a foot injury, there hasn’t been much there. Curtis Riley, signed in free agency after two years as a reserve with the Titans, had a solid spring and will challenge Thompson for the starting spot alongside strong safety Landon Collins. Riley, 26, is a converted cornerback. “He’s got really great feet and hips and range,’’ defensive coordinator James Bettcher said.
Most fascinating newcomer
Saquon BarkleyBill KostrounHmm, let’s see. A guy who everyone knows just by mentioning his first name gets picked No. 2 in the NFL draft, is called a “generational talent’’ and looks as if he were created in a running back laboratory. His No. 26 jersey is already one of the NFL’s top-sellers, and he hasn’t played a down yet. Yeah, it is safe to list Saquon Barkley as the Giants’ most fascinating newcomer. Heck, he’s one of the most fascinating newcomers in the past decade, maybe longer. We dare you to take your eyes off him this summer.
Coach’s toughest challenge
Pat Shurmur must resist the temptation to throw Beckham out there too early or too often. Sure, the Giants need to see if their prime offensive weapon is as good as new, and Beckham does need to get in sync with the new offensive system. Really, though, getting knocked around in training camp practices or, heaven forbid, in one of those tedious preseason games, is not what is needed here. Sept. 9 vs. the Jaguars is the only target for Beckham to hit, and Shurmur in his first year with the Giants must always keep that in the front of his mind.
Will HernandezAPMost intriguing rookie
Look, it is an easy fallback position to list Barkley virtually everywhere when it comes to “most’’ this or “greatest’’ that. Someone has to pave the way for the kid, right? So, let’s go with Will Hernandez. He is penciled in as the starting left guard, and everyone in the building is in love with his bullish demeanor on the field — he got into scraps in springtime OTAs, for goodness sakes. We cannot forget, though, that there will be growing pains and that the team he played for last season (Texas-El Paso) did not win a single game. Chris Snee, the player Hernandez is often likened to, was an immediate starter but needed time to gain his footing. Along the way, figure Hernandez will get under the skin of several defensive combatants.
Jason Pierre-PaulAPMost notable absence
That corner locker occupied by Jason Pierre-Paul will be inhabited by someone else, as the last link to the heralded defensive lines of the most recent Super Bowl eras is gone, traded away to the Buccaneers. Pierre-Paul was not a huge presence in the locker room, and his impact on the field diminished the past few seasons, but he was a fixture on the line for eight years. There was only one JPP. The freakish athleticism never left him, but that horrific fireworks accident permanently damaged his right hand, and he was never the same after that. Still, he started all 16 games in 2017 and led the team with 8.5 sacks.



