byJohn Schmeelk,Dan Salomone&Matt Citak

With less than two weeks before spring football ends and we don't see the Giants on the practice field again until training camp, the Giants.com crew members discuss what has caught their attention so far.

John Schmeelk:I know we are usually picking one answer here, but I am going to give a potpourri because there isn't a singular player or issue that I am obsessing over right now. So, here's what has me thinking at OTAs.

* The secondary is making things more difficult on the Giants receivers. Takeaways are up and there are not a lot of easy catches to be had, even when contact is not allowed. This is good to see early in camp.

* I like what I see with the way Abdul Carter is being allowed to rush from different spots, and his explosiveness and twitchiness is obvious.

* The Giant are giving their offensive linemen a lot of opportunities with different groups and, in some cases, different positions. There's no contact, so judging performance is tough, but there are a lot of snaps to go around.

* Jalin Hyatt seems to be finding an early connection with Russell Wilson. It is worth watching as the Giants figure out which wide receivers make the most sense on the field with the way the offense is going to be developed with Wilson behind center. If it is going to be more of vertical attack, Hyatt could be ideal in that type of system.

* I am drawing zero conclusions from what I have seen from two weeks of padless practices, but those are the things I am keeping an eye on that could be significant as we head into training camp, preseason games and the regular season.

Dan Salomone:Having three guys for two spots certainly beats the alternative if you're defensive coordinator Shane Bowen, who has been charged with solving "a really good problem to have." The addition of Abdul Carter to an edge rusher group that already included Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux was always going to require some creativity, but the only headaches should be for opposing coaches. We're starting to see and hear bits and pieces about how it's all going to work.

"Ultimately, we want to get our best 11 on the field, whatever way we got to maneuver to do that," Bowen said. "We've got to find ways to get the guys that can impact the game on the field. So there is some versatility there. With Abdul he did a little bit of that stuff off the ball in college early in his career, so there is some versatility there and some versatility with what we could potentially do with Burns as well.

"Again, making sure in Abdul's case that we understand what it takes to be an edge player in this league and all the development that comes with that. But at the same time, making sure we find ways to get the guys that can potentially impact the game for us on the field."

Burns shed further light on the thinking inside the defensive meeting room. They want to challenge offenses to figure out what they're doing. And because they can do the same thing but from different spits, it will "be confusing at a certain point." That will be especially true on third down, when they can be more exotic with Carter now on the team.

Then Burns delivered the quote of OTAs so far.

"It's kind of like pick your poison," he said. "And then we have a Dex, so..."

Sothat's going to be a problem for offenses.

Matt Citak:As Brian Daboll has told the media, star wide receiver Malik Nabers has not been participating in OTAs, as the team is being cautious with their top playmaker this spring as he recovers from a toe injury. With the No. 1 option in the passing game not out there during team drills, quarterback Russell Wilson has relied on his other pass-catchers. We are now heading towards the end of these spring practices, and it has become clear that Wilson has started to develop some nice chemistry with his other wide receivers and tight ends.

As Schmeelk mentioned, Wilson and Hyatt have connected a lot throughout the spring. The veteran quarterback has gone out of his way to praise Hyatt to the media at various times since being introduced as a Giant, and the two are backing up those praises on the field. Wilson's first pass during 7-on-7 drills on Monday was a beautiful throw to Hyatt in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown. Wilson ended up throwing four consecutive touchdown passes to start that team period, with the other three going to Tyrone Tracy Jr., Darius Slayton and Theo Johnson. The second-year tight end caught another touchdown from Wilson later during 11-on-11s, and Wan'Dale Robinson got in on the action in the final period with a big catch-and-run on a pass over the middle from Wilson.

Of course, it would be great if Nabers was out here catching passes from Wilson during OTAs. But the most important thing for the 21-year-old is to get fully healthy for the start of the season. I cannot imagine it will take long for Wilson and Nabers to build a connection of their own, and once they do, the sky is the limit for the star wideout. For right now, though, the veteran quarterback's growing chemistry with the other targets has been on full display these last couple of weeks. If that continues to grow as we get into training camp, then the offense should be in a good position to start strong once the season kicks off in September.

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