EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – After listening to appeals from their head coaches that they forgo the fighting that interrupted their joint practice yesterday, players on the Giants and Detroit Lions were less combative today – until they weren't.
A series of skirmishes broke out in the second half of the practice at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center, prompting Brian Daboll and Dan Campbell to cancel the final period. The teams will be off tomorrow before meeting in the preseason opener Thursday in MetLife Stadium. The extracurricular activity will presumably be eliminated then.
"Practice is a little bit different than a game," Daboll said in his pre-workout meeting with reporters. "Obviously, you can't do that in a game. We're going to try to clean up some of the things that led to some of that, but we're going to play hard and play physical and have another good practice."
They did for most of the scheduled two-hour practice, though a couple of incidents straddled if not crossed the line. In a seven-on-seven drill, Giants receiver Allen Robinson absorbed a hard hit from cornerback Brandon Joseph. Robinson was examined by the team's medical staff and soon returned. Running back Eric Gray had his helmet knocked off for the second straight day.
But the practice got increasingly chippy, and the origins of the first significant incident likely occurred much earlier. That's when the Malik Nabers beat Terrion Arnold for a touchdown pass from Daniel Jones as safety Kerby Joseph arrived too late. Nabers (LSU) and Arnold (Alabama) were not only their team's first-round draft choices this year, they have a history from competing in the Southeastern Conference.
About an hour later, the same players were involved in a similar play on the adjacent field. This time, Jones' pass for Nabers fell incomplete with Arnold and Joseph defending. Nabers tapped Arnold's helmet when the play ended. As the players returned to their respective huddles, Joseph ran at and punched Nabers, who was quickly removed from the field.
"It's hot," Nabers said. "We're competing. Stuff like that is going to happen. It's football at the end of the day.
"That's the competitor in me and Arnold. We talk almost every day about just competing, how great we want to be. So, it's nothing against him. He's my brother, so I'm going to give him the work he needs. He's going to give me the work I need. But I was just tapping him on the helmet, good play. That's all it was."
The New York Giants hosted the Detroit Lions for joint practices ahead of Thursday's preseason opener.