The immediate impact of rookie skill players can often be negligible. In 2011, the Giants were able to scrounge up some respectable kick returns from their mid-round selection, Jerrel Jernigan. They gained next to nothing from their 7th round RB, Da'Rel Scott.
But the defending Super Bowl champions have roles needing to be filled and they are accepting entry-level candidates. David Wilson and Rueben Randle may not need to sit through a "red shirt" season.
Brandon Jacobs has departed for San Francisco. Mario Manningham appears to have left his heart there as well.
And while one young man, Joseph Armento, may have been willing to mail Brandon Jacobs the contents of his piggy bank in order to persuade him to stay in New York, even the casual observer could see that the Jacobs of old had long ago left the Meadowlands.
Jacobs took over as the feature RB following Barber's retirement after the 2006 season. In 2007 he rushed for 1,007 yards and helped carry the Giants through the postseason and through the unbeaten Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.
In 2008 he notched a career high 1,089 yards on the ground and scored 15 TDs despite sharing the backfield with fellow 1,000 yard rusher Derrick Ward.
In 2009, Jacbos's numbers took a hit and have not since recovered. Despite seeing action in all but two regular season games, Jacobs only managed 571 yards rushing last season.
Jacobs's declining explosiveness and Bradshaw's late start relegated the Giants to the lowest rushing yards on the 2011 season of any of the 32 teams.
Bradshaw's durability will remain a question in 2012 despite the agility and speed that he demonstrated during the later stretches of last year's championship season. Playing with permanent screws inserted into both feet, Bradshaw only played in 12 regular season games last season.
Enter Wilson. Claiming that Wilson can make an impact early might not be a profound statement. In today's highly competitive and strategy laden NFL, RB is one of the few positions left that consistently provides a manageable learning curve for rookies.
But Wilson may do more then contribute. He could find himself sharing a fairly even load with Bradshaw. Drawing praise from the coaching staff during OTA's for his explosiveness and agility, Wilson will be the number 2 back in a stable that is itching to play a bigger role than it did last season. Since 2007, the Giants have preferred to rely on a rotation of rushers instead of one feature back and a compliment option for special situations.
Wilson's challengers for the second spot on the depth chart are Scott, DJ Ware, Joe Martinek,and Andre Brown. Brown spent last season on the Giants practice squad and has bulked up heading into the 2012 season. He will be attempting to gain the short yardage snaps that often went to a no longer available Jacobs.
The Giants spent their 2nd round pick on a WR for an obvious reason. Following Manningham's departure, the Giants needed an affordable but potent option to help maintain their dangerous three receiver packages.
Randle is expected to win the third spot on the depth chart, which is a role that often includes playing the outside while Victor Cruz shifts to the slot.
Randle's main competition for the third spot on the depth chart consists of Domenik Hixon and Jernigan. After OTA's Randle is still the odds on favorite to win the job heading into camp. In fact, he may see even more time than expected with Hakeem Nicks not likely to return until late August at the earliest.
