3 Takeaways from Giants' First 2026 Minicamp Practice Under John Harbaugh

Tight end Theo Johnson is entering his third NFL season after a rough one last season in which he was tied (with four others, including Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce) for most dropped passes by a tight end (seven), five of which came on third down for the former Penn State star.

Dropped passes in general were a problem for the Giants last season in general, as they finished tied for the tenth-highest number of dropped passes (24) according to data compiled from Pro Football Focus.

One other note about Johnson. Last season, he was targeted 14 times in the red zone, coming down with six receptions for a 42.9% reception rate and four touchdown receptions.

Although it’s anticipated that new tight end Isaiah Likely will be getting a lot of red-zone targets in the coming year, Johnson’s size is too good to ignore in tight quarters as an option.

The Screen Game’s Comeback?

The Giants' in-house media made mention of running back Devin Singletary picking up significant yardage on screens. This is potentially significant because it raises the question of whether the Giants plan to incorporate more screen plays into their new offense.

Last year, the Giants ran screen plays on 55 passing plays (9%) according to SIS, putting them 14th in the league.

They could be looking to increase that this year, as an effective screen game will go a long way toward slowing the opposing pass rush and helping the offense pick up sizable yardage per play.

Kicking Competition Under Way

One of the underrated yet important competitions on deck for the summer will be the battle between veteran kicker Jason Sanders and first-year kicker Ben Sauls.

Sanders is returning after missing last season with a hip injury, while Sauls, who was perfect on all his field goal attempts for the Giants last year, will be looking to show the coaches that he can handle long-distance pressure field goal tries, his longest of his eight conversions (on eight attempts) last year going for 45 yards.

The Giants' report didn’t specify distances, but it did mention that both kickers were perfect on all their field goal attempts.  

Adebo Showed Up

Cornerback Paulson Adebo, who was not present for the first day of the team’s offseason program, was mentioned in the practice report, putting to rest any rumors about a contract dispute or any unhappiness with the team being the reason for his absence on that first day.

Adebo, who a year ago signed a three-year, $54 million contract with the Giants, had a rough first season in blue. He missed five games due to a knee sprain, but he also posted some of his career-worst PFF grades in coverage since the 2022 season.

Adebo, who was the team’s de facto CB1, finished last season with a 92.0 NFL coverage rating, his third-worst of his career, and allowed 66.7% of the pass targets against him to be completed (second-highest percentage) for 533 yards.