Receivers David Sills V and Alex Bachman Turning Heads in Camp
East Rutherford, NJ -- Before the draft, it was widely believed that there was no way the New York Giants, a team that had just completed a season without a true No. 1 receiver, would pass on plucking talent from a loaded class.
But general manager Dave Gettleman had other ideas, instead choosing to spend his ten draft picks on linebackers, offensive linemen and defensive backs.
Although Gettleman did add three undrafted receivers from that deep class—Austin Mack, Derrick Dillon, and Binjimen Victor—thus far, it's been a pair of carryovers from last year's practice squad who have stood out.
Those would be the guys that wide receivers coach Tyke Tolbert has described as a “rep stealer” and a “plugger”—David Sills V and Alex Bachman.
Sills and Bachman both began their respective NFL careers as undrafted players, Sills out of West Virginia and Backman out of Wake Forest. And both were initially let go by the first NFL teams to take a chance on them—the Bills in Sills and the Rams on Bachman—before they each found themselves on the Giants practice squad last year.
This year, Sills and Bachman have both been turning heads in training camp, perhaps inspiring to be the next Victor Cruz of the receiver group. Sills, once a highly recruited high school quarterback who eventually switched to receiver after losing out in the quarterback competition at WVU but impressing the coaching staff with his scout teamwork at receiver.
Sills finished his college career with 132 receptions for 2,097 yards and 35 touchdowns, production he hopes to show the Giants he can be just as productive.
“David Sills has done a really good job; he's a really smart guy,” said receivers coach Tyke Tolbert. “He'll go in there and play all the positions. told you guys the other day that he's a rep stealer. He has his reps, and he’ll go ahead and run his reps, but then he'll steal some other reps.
“If he sees guys running down the field, he'll jump in there and say, ‘I got them, I got them, I got them.’ I like that about him--he jumps in there, no matter what position it is.”
That willingness caught the attention of both head coach Joe Judge and quarterback Daniel Jones as well.
“This guy busts his butt every day he comes out,” Judge said after last week’s scrimmage. “He’s shown up a lot for us already on offense, he shows up in the kicking game.”
“He’s a guy out there you can trust,” Jones added. “A guy who’s in the right spot a lot of the time and can get open and make plays. He’s a good player.”
The 6’0, 190-pound Bachman, who got his NFL start with the Rams, had a productive four-year career at Wake Forest. There, he recorded 82 receptions for 1,162 yards and ten touchdowns. Bachman also received some experience as a kickoff and punt returner and contributed on special teams, a role that might be his ticket onto the Giants roster.
“He knows all the positions,” Tolbert said of Bachman. “He can plug in anywhere, which you need to have guys like that who are good at plugging anywhere. He's very knowledgeable. He's adjusted well to where we're going against the competition we're going against.”
Judge has also liked what he’s seen from Bachman.
“He’s productive in drills, he’s productive in team periods, it’s no surprise to see him making plays,” he said last week.
While Bachman, who was waived with an injury settlement off injured reserve by the Rams last September, is off to a good start, he still needs to continue working his way up the depth chart, according to Tolbert.
“We will have to see him more against 'good on good,'” the coach said. “What I mean by that is really going against the ones and going against man coverage to see how much improvement he can make.”
Bachman, usually the leader when the team runs its post-practice sprints, has shown that same hustle when he is out there, which has undoubtedly endeared him to the coaching staff.
“He's been working his butt off and doing a really good job,” Tolbert said. “The more he goes out there and makes plays, the more opportunity he'll get.”
