A play for the ages?: NY Giants rookie Kenny Phillips' INT in minicamp

ALBANY, N.Y. - Back in minicamp, rookie S Kenny Phillips made an awesome diving play to either break up a pass or intercept it. The final ruling on that play is still somewhat in doubt.

Whatever the result, that play still has the Giants' defensive coaches gushing.

"I haven't seen a play like that and I've been around the NFL. Not for a long time but over 13, 14 years," safeties coach Dave Merritt said this afternoon as training camp opened. "For this kid to be playing half-field (coverage) on the right, get his feet turned, run and track the ball in the air, jump over everybody's head like Superman ... and whether he caught it or not, I don't know, but I started running after him, giving him a high five. Unbelievable play."

So unbelievable that defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo mentioned it again today - unprovoked - when asked if he was looking forward to the competition at the safety position in general.

"Yeah, especially after we say Kenny make that play in the spring," Spagnuolo said. "That was a tremendous play. ... In that setting, where we have no pads on ... again, real football is coming up here shortly, especially on the defensive side of the ball ... but it was impressive."

Was that one play enough for the coaches to suddenly formulate a different opinion of Phillips?

"It's enough for you to say, 'That's why we drafted him. That's what we looking for,'" Merritt said of the 31st overall pick and former Miami Hurricane. "Because on the Miami film, it was hard to find plays like that on Kenny because he was down (in the box) a lot. But you knew he had the range because you look at his 40 time, you look at his shuttle time and all that, so you know the kid has the ability to go play the deep middle. For the kid to play a half and go get it ... I mean, you look at some plays when he was playing the middle post and he was getting from the middle to the sideline. It was very nice to see that."

When asked, based on that play and others, if the 6-2, 208-pound Phillips has long-striding speed or quick-patter speed, Merritt said, "He has both. And the thing is, his size, he has the height, has the long-arm wingspan, so this kid has a bunch of potential."

Yeah, but come on, let's answer the real question: Did he catch that ball in June? Or did it hit the ground.

"You know what," Merritt said with a laugh when told Spagnuolo ruled it an interception, "he caught it."

(nj.com)