Arvell Reese’s college tape passed the lie-detector test.
The Giants believed they were getting a rare combination of size and athleticism at inside linebacker by drafting Reese with the No. 5 pick, but head coach John Harbaugh’s mind is more at ease after overseeing the last of Saturday’s two rookie minicamp practices.
“I thought he moved well,” Harbaugh said. “He is 6-foot-4-plus, 240-some pounds. Yet he moves like a smaller guy. He moves his feet. He can flip his hips. Very natural-looking mover off the ball, which was something we saw on tape. We thought we saw, but now we saw it on the practice field, so we feel better about it.”
While predecessor Brian Daboll annually put the draft class on ice to avoid injury risk during rookie minicamp, Harbaugh threw Reese, fellow first-rounder Francis Mauigoa and the other five picks into individual and 11-on-11 drills.
Harbaugh pulled Reese aside at one point for some one-on-one block-shedding instruction.
“Very serious-minded,” Harbaugh said. “I don’t think he got one assignment wrong throughout the two days, which is great to see.”
Rookie minicamp is like a “fast rehearsal” to be integrated alongside the veterans in upcoming OTAs, but there have been times in years past when red flags such as quarterback arm strength and the commitment level to practice were quickly raised.
Not in this case.
“It was everything I ever dreamed of,” Reese said. “It felt good.”
Reese had 10 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks in his lone season starting for Ohio State.
“I want to show the team right away that I’m one of those guys that would rather be seen and not heard,” Reese said. “Especially as a rookie, that’s what you have to do. You have to know what you’re doing on the field before you say what you’re about. Just get on the field, minimize mistakes and just show I’m one of those guys that can get better every day.”
The Giants didn’t expect Reese to be available at No. 5 — he was the favorite to go to the Jets at No. 2 for much of the predraft process — but did their homework in case of a surprise.
“Most people saw him as an edge rusher. We see him as a stand-up [weakside linebacker],” assistant general manager Brandon Brown said. “We’ve seen the last couple days his ability to command the huddle. That’s the attention to detail and presence part of rookie minicamp.”
Reese’s presence made an impression on Giants second-round cornerback Colton Hood when they trained together for the NFL combine.
“You see how big he is,” Hood said. “He came up [to the podium] and probably looked like The Hulk, you know? His physical abilities, and not just that, but he’s a smart football player. He knows football. That’s why he’s going to be a problem, for sure.”
Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson stressed to the scouting department that he wanted his scheme to “bring chaos, be violent, be multiple,” Brown said. Soon enough, Reese will be lined up next to fellow 6-foot-4 inside linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, whose speed and range strengths should complement Reese’s physicality.
“You have two guys who are 6-foot-4,” Brown said. “Defending the pass, you’ve got a rim protector, you would say. It’s hard, where you are going to have to layer those throws.”
Harbaugh teased Reese’s versatility being used off the ball as well as at defensive end.
“I don’t know if we’re cheating or not,” Harbaugh said, “but you’ll see him playing over the guard sometimes just by virtue of the call.”
The Giants coined the “NASCAR” pass rush package during the days of Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, Jason Pierre-Paul and Mathias Kiwanuka by sliding Tuck to the inside in 2011. Is it back?
“You want to marry the rush with the coverage,” Brown said. “[Reese] can do it from multiple alignments. Abdul [Carter] can do it from multiple assignments. You talk about getting your NASCAR package out there and deploying the rush. He gives us versatility and allows us to create chaos and matchups that are in our favor from a defensive standpoint.”
Reese credited linebackers coach Frank Bush for preparing him and sixth-round middle linebacker Jack Kelly before rookie minicamp.
“He spent a lot of time pouring the playbook into us,” Reese said. “It’s always fun to me, especially when I think about all those different roles I could play.”
He is not alone in feeling the anticipation.
