Giants miss Jeremy Shockey's blocking ability at tight end

In case anyone needed a reminder that Jeremy Shockey was gone - as if the quiet summer wasn't a clue - it was all there on the film of the Giants' preseason opener in Detroit. And when tight ends coach Mike Pope watched it, he knew he had a lot of work to do.

There were missed assignments, missed blocks, miscommunications, incorrect routes and a slew of other mental errors. For most of the last six years, with Shockey on his side, those were things Pope didn't have to worry about. Now he does.

"My biggest mistake as a coach is I make assumptions that these guys might know or have been through some of these experiences and that happened a little bit (in the preseason opener)," Pope said. "There were a few unique things that happened and they just caught us by surprise, because when you look at these guys, they didn't play very much last year. "Primarily, in theory, we're basically starting over at this position." Continue