John Michael Schmitz Taking Things Day by Day

If a healthy John Michael Schmitz isn't the starting center for the New York Giants in Week 1, something will have gone astray.

But so far, all signs seem to be pointing toward that being the case, as Schmitz has been earning consecutive days working with the starting offense through the first seven training camp practices.

But don't go looking for the team's second-round draft pick to go celebrate.

No, Schmitz, from the University of Minnesota, is living in the present, and apparently, in the present, the center position hasn't officially been awarded to him.

"Yeah, I mean, no jobs are won--what day are we on? What practice? I mean, we are just a couple of practices into fall camp," Schmitz said Friday. "Right now, my main focus is just to continue to keep getting better every day and gain that trust with that o-line room and that offense to just prove that I can be out there, and I can make the calls and just be urgent with it."

The rookie's style of play reminds one of the old "Suburbanites" offensive line, a group from the mid-to-late 1980s that consisted of Karl Nelson, Bill Ard, Bart Oates, Chris Godfrey, and Brad Benson.

Schmitz, who ironically bears a bit of a resemblance to a young Oates, fits that mold. He shows up, puts in his time, takes to coaching very well, and is working toward erasing doubts about his ability to handle the job full-time.

Head coach Brian Daboll has been encouraged by what Schmitz has shown, praising the rookie for spending extra time with quarterback Daniel Jones.

"I think he’s improved each day, but he’s in the category with all the rookies--a long way to go," Daboll said.

Schmitz agreed.

"My main focus is really on just taking that one thing that you focus on every day, which could be a technique, could just a mental standpoint of it, and just keep getting better at it. That’s how I am looking at it," he said.

He's certainly been getting that chance. In one-on-one drills, Schmitz has been pitted against Dexter Lawrence, about as difficult of a challenge as there is for any young rookie looking to impress.

"Dex is a great player. All-Pro last year. Great opportunity to go against him every day in practice," Schmitz said. "Continue to perfect my craft, learn from him, and at the end of the day, get better."

In their first meeting, which consisted of two reps, Lawrence, who is a load for any offensive lineman to handle one-on-one, managed to move Schmitz back, but the rookie stubbornly dug in and tried to stop Lawrence from penetrating the "pocket."

Besides working on his technique, Schmitz revealed that he's looking to find his voice as the orchestrator and chief communicator of the Giants offensive line.

"My main focus was to just be loud and be urgent up front," he said of his most recent practice. "Just continue to keep getting better as an o-line, and the main thing for me is to communicate upfront and make sure everyone is on the same page."

With reps comes confidence, and Schmitz said that's been growing.

"I’d say every day, just gain more confidence out there. Keep getting more confident in my calls and putting the offensive line in a position to succeed out there and me and DJ (Daniel Jones) seeing things the same way as an offense," he said.

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