Manningham ready for breakout season for Giants
Mario Manningham may have exceptional speed, but last year there were things not even he could catch up to. The routes, the splits, the plays, all of the mumbo-jumbo involved in an NFL receiver's responsibilities. When Manningham missed most of his rookie training camp due to a quad injury, it set him back for the entire season. Rookie receivers are notorious for developing slowly in the league. Those who miss the bulk of the preseason face an even bigger struggle.
Out of the blocks, and he was already falling behind.
But Manningham is no longer a rookie. Even if that first season consisted of only four receptions and action in just nine of the 17 games, it's over. Manningham is in Season Two. And this time he's ready.
"I can just go out there and let my athleticism take over,"
he said Monday after an OTA workout where he showed why many believed he was the steal of the draft when the Giants selected him in the third round. "When you're a rookie you're going out there trying to remember the play and getting your splits down right. You don't remember half the play. I'm better. Way better. It's just going out there and playing now."
The Giants are certainly going to need that. Without Plaxico Burress and Amani Toomer to groom the young players, they are essentially on their own. Seldom-used receiver David Tyree has become a veteran voice for the position, but his future on the team is uncertain. Domenik Hixon and Steve Smith are the projected starters at this point. But Manningham is the unknown element. Will he fulfill his potential after a disappointing first campaign? Or will he continue to struggle with the physical and mental rigors of the NFL?
His quarterback is confident in at least one of those aspects.
"He came in this offseason a little more confident in what's going on,"
Eli Manning said. "He still has a lot to learn. He didn't get a whole lot of playing time in live action and in making reads and decisions. But he came in with a pretty good feel for what's going on. He's running faster, he's more decisive in what he's doing. He's not running on nails because he's a little indecisive. You really see his speed and his explosiveness and big-play potential."
Said Manningham: "I just want to go out here and play. Just play. Without thinking, I want to play. That's why I'm here, that's what I want to do."
Manningham could emerge as the receiving threat the Giants need to help replace Burress. But he also knows that it's not only on him. There are plenty of other receivers with so-far thin resumes trying to fill that void for the Giants.
"We've got a lot of anxious young guys trying to get out there and play,"
Manningham said. "So every day at practice you're going to see people competing for a position. We'll be all right. I think we'll be all right. I think we're going to be good."
And that's all the thinking he and the Giants want him to be doing.
