The New York Giants and New York Jets may share a home stadium, but they rarely share a practice field. That could change this summer, however, as multiple outlets have reported that the two NFL franchises are working to schedule joint practices.
The Giants and Jets are “likely” to hold a joint practice session leading up to their preseason clash on Aug. 28, according to Jordan Raanan of ESPN.
The Giants and Jets are likely to hold a joint practice in the week leading up to their Aug. 28 preseason game, per source. The two local teams getting together for an afternoon on the practice field. Should be fun. First time since memorable 2005 entanglement.
“The Giants and Jets are likely to hold a joint practice in the week leading up to their Aug. 28 preseason game, per source,” Raanan reported on Twitter. “The two local teams getting together for an afternoon on the practice field. Should be fun. First time since memorable 2005 entanglement.”
The “entanglement” Raanan references was an on-field fight between former Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey and members of the Jets defensive backfield. The fight occurred before the age of social media, so there are no videos of the scuffle on the Internet. The New York Post has an AP photograph of Shockey tied up with two Jets players, but that’s one of few photos that exist from the fight.
Here’s how the 2005 Associated Press report described the fight (via ESPN):
ALBANY, N.Y. — Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey got into a fight with two Jets players on the second play of a joint practice between the teams Saturday that also featured an argument between Giants coach Tom Coughlin and Jets defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson.
On the second play of a 9-on-7 drill pitting the Giants offense against the Jets defense, Shockey got in a tussle with defensive backs Erik Coleman and Oliver Celestin, and soon all three players were throwing wild punches.
Coleman and Celestin pulled the Giants tight end to the ground and Jets linebacker Jonathan Vilma jumped on top, touching off a melee involving numerous players from both teams. Order was restored after a few minutes.
Shockey was interviewed after that practice to deliver his side of the story.
“I was blocking somebody and I got shoved in the back, and the next thing I know, everybody’s fighting,” Shockey told the AP (via ESPN). “There’s no bad blood. That’s how football is. You might as well do it now, when you don’t get fined and Paul Tagliabue can’t take any money out of your pocket. Do it now, get it over with. I’m sure it happens at every other camp.”
Even though Shockey said there was “no bad blood,” the Giants and Jets have not shared a practice field since.
Is The Giants-Jets Relationship Warming?
Outside of their annual preseason game, the Giants and Jets don’t collaborate on much. They’re in opposite conferences, so they only played each other once every four years when the NFL had a 16-game schedule (it’s possible they could meet sooner than that under the 17-game formula).
It was surprising to see the Jets trade defensive lineman Leonard Williams to the Giants for a pair of draft picks back in 2019, because the two franchises so rarely swing deals like that. The trade, however, did not open the floodgates for a flurry of interaction between the two teams. It also occurred when Dave Gettleman was still the Giants general manager.
During this year’s draft, the Giants made their first trade with the Jets under the new regime of GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll. The deal allowed the Jets to move up to Pick No. 36, which they used to select running back Breece Hall. The Giants came away from the trade with the Jets’ second-round pick and an additional fifth-round pick.
Perhaps this trade was the precursor for a warmer relationship between the two New York NFL teams.
Giants Still Lead All-Time Series vs. Jets
The Giants and Jets have only met 14 times in the regular season since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. The Giants hold an 8-6 lead in the all-time series, despite dropping each of the past two head-to-head matchups. The most recent meeting came in 2019, when Giants quarterback Daniel Jones threw for 308 yards and four touchdowns (zero interceptions) in a 34-27 loss.
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Giants Select NFL Team For Joint Practices at Training Camp: Report