Myles White lightning fast on receiving end for Giants
New York Giants wide receiver Myles White (19) runs a route during training camp at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center in East Rutherford, NJ, on Tuesday, Aug 2, 2016. Credit: Brad Penner
When Odell Beckham Jr. suffered his ankle injury on Sunday, he was replaced in the lineup by Myles White. It at first seemed that the offense would lose a step with that substitution, but in fact, it may have gained one.
While Beckham is certainly one of the fastest Giants on the team, he is not necessarily the fastest. According to a source, the GPS data that the team keeps on players to track them on the field shows that when the players are in full pads White is actually the fleetest player on the roster. The Giants would not confirm that or release the data but acknowledged that White is among the fastest “two or three” Giants based on their numbers. The conclusion can be reached just based on observation as well.
He certainly showed it on Sunday. With Beckham sidelined, White ran a go route in his place and blazed past cornerback Janoris Jenkins for a long touchdown pass from Eli Manning.
But the fastest?
“It’s up there between me, O and DRC,” White said of Beckham and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. “We always debate about it, but if the numbers say it’s me, that’s fine with me.”
White said the three have never actually lined up to race.
“But in the field of play sometimes you’ll know you are on the back side on a run and you’re chasing them just to show them ‘I’m here,’ ” he said. “It’s a blessing to be around guys like O and DRC because they’re fast as well. You push each other. It’s always funny when we see each other hit that next gear, it’s like: ‘OK, OK.’ It’s a competitive thing.”
White joined the Giants last year after he was waived by the Packers at the end of the preseason. He began on the Giants’ practice squad and then made it to the active roster. He appeared in 12 games and caught seven passes for 88 yards and a touchdown. The Giants re-signed him this offseason.
“It’s always good to stay here for a full year and get a rapport with Eli,” White said. “Being around the guys, understanding the team and the motion of the flow, it’s definitely a benefit.”
White will need all the benefits he can get to make a team that is top-heavy at wide receiver with Beckham, rookie Sterling Shepard and a healthy Victor Cruz. That leaves players like White fighting for the last few spots on the depth chart and on the roster. Plays like the one Sunday help.
“I think Myles is having a nice camp,” Ben McAdoo said. “Myles is poised to make a run.”
He always has been. It’s what he does best.
“Pretty much so, from Little League to now,” White said when asked if he’s always been the fastest player on his teams. “If I’m not the fastest, I want to make it close. That’s my go-to.”
With the emphasis on “go.”
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
