Rookie Progress Report: First taste of the NFL – Giants.com

When Giants Life: The Process was released after the draft, it was revealed that the Giants were considering using their second-round pick on Hyatt before selecting Schmitz at No. 57. Of course, Hyatt ended up lasting into the third round, where the Giants traded up to No. 71 in order to ensure they landed the speedy receiver out of Tennessee. It's safe to say the Giants are happy with their early returns on Hyatt.

Throughout the first few weeks of training camp practices, Hyatt would seemingly make a deep, highlight reel catch just about every day. He would use his speed to blaze past defenders and get open down the field, where he would bring in deep passes from Daniel Jones or Tyrod Taylor. We then saw him do the same thing in the second preseason game, as he brought in a 33-yard pass from Taylor for a touchdown. Despite some preconceived notions about Hyatt from other people around the league, assistant general manager Brandon Brown said the team was confident in the rookie wideout's all-around skill set after doing extensive research on him.

"I think with Jalin, it's doing your due diligence," Brown told the media last week. "It's knowing what he was asked to do at Tennessee. It's us having those extra conversations with his position coach at Tennessee, talking to the coaching staff at Tennessee, knowing what their system called for because what he's doing for us, he has more talent in his body than the role he was asked to play at Tennessee. So, you look at the skill set, did he have bend, balance and burst? Can he get out of breaks? Was he asked to run a limited route tree at Tennessee versus what he can do for us? I think us going that, call it, full circle of doing all our due diligence and finding the evidence, it was a great process.

"I say it again, the synergy. You talk about the full process with Jalin, hats off to our college department. They identified Jalin early - that allowed Joe (Schoen), Tim (McDonnell) and Dennis (Hickey) to go see him against Alabama. It allowed me to go see him later against Missouri, then (wide receivers coach) Mike Groh spends time with him. Dabs spends time with him. We have him in the facility for a 30 visit. We get him on the board. All those things add to who he is and the upside. You see him making extra effort in terms of blocking down the field in practice. That adds to who he is. He's a great young man, and we're excited for him."

With their first pick on Day 3 of the draft, the Giants selected the running back out of Oklahoma with the No. 172 overall selection. Gray has gotten some rushing attempts in each of the three preseason games, but has struggled to find much running room on those runs. However, the 5-foot-10, 210-pound back has found more success on special teams, where he's been serving as a returner on both kickoff and punts.

Against the Lions, Gray returned three kickoffs for a total of 62 yards while adding two punt returns for eight yards. He recorded a 9-yard punt return against the Panthers, and wrapped up the preseason with an 18-yard kickoff return against the Jets. More importantly, Gray has made some smart decisions on special teams, including allowing a kickoff to bounce and eventually land out of bounds, which gave the Giants the ball on the 40. Special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey has been impressed with the rookie's football IQ.

"Just making good decisions, and he's done that so far," McGaughey said about Gray's performance as a returner. "He's done some really good things as far as decision making. We always tell our guys, 'Let the plays come to you; don't chase them.' The plays will come to you. As a rookie, they all haveall rookies have a tendency to try and go chase plays. You've just got to let the play come to you."

Hawkins has undoubtedly been one of the biggest surprises of training camp. The sixth-round pick out of Old Dominion has played well since camp opened, slowly earning his way up to seeing significant time with the starting defense. Hawkins' performance has been so strong that veteran Adoree' Jackson has gotten a lot of practice reps in the slot in order to allow Hawkins to start on the outside with Banks.

The 6-foot-3 rookie cornerback has garnered praise from just about everybody inside the Quest Diagnostics Training Center, from veteran players to the coaching staff all the way up to the front office.

"He's got length that fits our system," Brown said last week. "Getting the description from Wink, Wink is very particular of what plays in the system and what's at a premium. We know you've got to be able to run, got to be strong, guys that have length and you've got to be willing to be physical in the run game also in press coverage

"You look at where he is in training camp. Nothing has been too big for him. Every time there's been a platform, he's answered the bell. So, I think more guys like him that fit our profile, and then they have the mental toughness, play with short-term memory. They're getting coached the same way. It doesn't matter how we acquire them. Once they're here, it's an even playing field. Dabs says, again, you earn your playing time based on merit, and Tre's nothing more than an example of that."

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Rookie Progress Report: First taste of the NFL - Giants.com