Giants rookie linebacker Arvell Reese making great first impression in minicamp
The book on Arvell Reese seemed pretty clear by the NFL Draft. Great edge rusher. Incredibly quick. Raw athleticism that he showed at the NFL Combine.
But the Giants are learning their rookie linebacker has more than what was sold on tape. With minicamp ending Wednesday, Reese is quickly impressing his teammates by showing more than they expected.
“Watching his college tape, a lot of the plays that he was making was off the line of scrimmage,” tight end Isaiah Likely said Monday. “So seeing how well he drops into coverage, how well he’s been in space and how instinctual he is in zone coverages, that was really something I raised my eyebrows to because that’s something that wasn’t really highlighted, I would say, before he got here.”
On one play during OTAs, Reese kept up with running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., moving in motion and staying in stride with him on his route. On another play, Reese lined up at edge and got off the ball so fast, he left Jaxson Dart unable to scramble for what would have been a sack.
Tracy was surprised how quickly Reese moved. It’s one thing to feel his presence at 6-4 but another to see him stick close and make it hard to escape in space.
“He’s fast, he has good instincts,” Tracy said of Reese. “He’s a football ballplayer, man. He just knows what to do.”
Reese took it in stride. Like the Transformer toys, there’s more than meets the eye with the 20-year-old and he was glad to be showing it during his first offseason workouts.
“I think this is a perfect situation for me,” he said Tuesday. “Me being able to play linebacker and then when it’s time, get unique with me. But just playing linebacker, I feel like that’s where I’m most comfortable playing.”
It’s also what the Giants need from him and free-agent signee Tremaine Edmunds: Be impact players. They released linebacker and captain Bobby Okereke to create cap space but also upgrade that position.
Reese could have easily joined a deep pass-rushing group with Brian Burns, Abdul Carter and Kayvon Thibodeaux. Instead, why not moonlight with them while also manning the middle of the field with Edmunds? Sounds like a healthy compromise that Reese is feeling.
“I’m a linebacker and I just get to play linebacker and that’s where I’m going to be deployed first,” he said. “So I think that’s why it’s a perfect situation.”
Then there’s Edmunds.
Assistant general manager Brandon Brown called him and Reese “rim protectors” and he showed why Tuesday by leaping to intercept a pass from Dart.
He’s quickly adjusted to being a leader on defense in his short time with the team. He’s also admired how he and Reese complement each other with their athleticism and skills.
“He’s extremely hardworking. I’m going to take my hat off to him for that,” Edmunds said. “You can tell he comes from a good system as far as what he was doing in college [Ohio State], so he picks up on information fast.”
More important, Edmunds can relate to Reese another way. He, too, was a 20-year-old rookie when the Bills drafted him in the first round in 2018.
Experience can be the best water to enrich soil and that’s what the Giants hope happens. Although Edmunds is giving his young teammate wisdom, he’s also seeing Reese slowly mature.
He appreciates Reese wants to be seen, not heard. That’s how Edmunds navigated his rookie year and that’s what he wants Reese to continue doing.
“You come in as a young guy, you got to develop that trust,” Edmunds said. “How you develop that is coming out on this practice field working and making sure you’re taking care of yourself inside the building. He’s doing all that.”
Reese and Edmunds have already formed a tag team that Burns called “scary as hell.” It’s a partnership that will be asked to fix a Giants weakness last year.
It will help having Reese do more than people expected.
“I love where I’m at right now,” he said. “Like the role I’m gonna be in. How they’re gonna use me and put me in good situations. Yeah, I love it.”
Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
