“Do the damn thing.’ The advice Giants veterans are giving their younger teammates ahead of Sunday’s regular-season opener

Despite the constant meetings, practices, and repetition to ensure opening day against the Cowboys in Dallas goes off like clockwork, there is bound to be a few cases of excessive jitters experienced by some of the rookies making their official NFL debuts.

Fortunately, those Giants rookies who find themselves overexcited have some wise veteran teammates standing by with words of wisdom to help combat any nerves.

“Just have fun,” said safety Antoine Bethea. “It’s football. It’s a game we’ve been playing for a long time. We’ve been going over these calls for six months.

“A lot of these players played against more people in college than they are on Sunday. Don’t let the bright lights get to you too much, but at the end of the day, go out there and have fun.”

Giants special teams captain Michael Thomas, who’s beginning his sixth NFL season, said he remembered his first NFL game and how he took a few moments before kickoff to walk the field and reconcile how far he had come in his quest to be an NFL player.

But after that, Thomas said it was time to get down to work and block out the noise around him, an approach he said he’s been sharing with his younger teammates.

“I tell them to be excited and embrace it. Be excited, but once you’re on the field, understand that it’s just football. Go do what you’ve been doing your whole life--go execute your job and block out all the noise,” he said.

“Maybe pregame before we even go out for warm, let’s go walk the field. See the scoreboard and embrace everything. Have that, 'Aw, I’m really here' feeling, that moment, but once that ball is kicked off, it’s just football.”

Long snapper Zak DeOssie, who with 13 seasons under his belt is the second longest-tenured member of the Giants after quarterback Eli Manning, said it’s essential for a player to remember why he’s here to begin with, which is usually due to a love of the game.

“So just go play hard and have fun,” DeOssie said. “The other thing is you’re the best in business. That’s why you’re here. So know that before you step on the field, rest is gravy. Make sure you have fun doing it.”

Receiver Sterling Shepard said the best advice he can pass along to his teammates on how to not get too excited is something his mother Cheri told him during his rookie season.

“Do the damn thing,” he said with a grin. “You’ve been doing this thing, you know, your whole life, so just do the damn thing.”

Turning pensive, Shepard said, “ I was given this skill set by God, so I’m going to go out and show it every Sunday. I knew my new, my plays, which helps calm me down a lot. So I was prepared, and it was just like, ‘Go get the job done.’

"So that's what I would tell my teammates-- 'You’ve been playing this game your whole life, and there’s nothing different about this.' It’s football at the end of the day. So go out there and do what you’ve always done, remember that this game is not for long and take advantage of every single moment .”

The advice from the veterans doesn’t stop at managing the pregame jitters.

Offensive tackle Nate Solder said that it’s also important to not get too caught up in the highs and the lows that come in one’s performance during a game.

“I went into my rookie season with a lot of confidence,” said Solder, who’s starting his ninth NFL season.

“I remember I played camp all camp at left tackle and the week of the first game, they moved me in a right tackle the week of the game.

“I think the biggest thing I remember about that was the deception because I played well my first game and how that set me up for failure because if I’d have played bad, then I would have worked harder. But I played well so I kind of thought I’d figured it out and I little did. I know I had a lot to learn.”

And for those players who might not have much, if any of a role in Sunday’s game plan, team captain Saquon Barkley had a few words of wisdom he’s willing to share.

“The best advice that I can is to stay patient,” he said. “It’s a long season, so for the ones that aren’t playing, be prepared every single week. You always got to stay ready because you never know when you're going to be called upon.

"So I would say stay with it, continue to work every single day, find something to get better at and keep on improving.”

The advice of the GIants veterans has been well received by the Giants rookies, many of whom are looking forward to their official NFL debuts Sunday, but who are also trying to balance the event with it being another football game in their respective careers.

Defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence said he’s more anxious to get it going than he is nervous.

“I’ve played in a lot of football games, and it’s just like another football game, pretty much,” he said of the upcoming regular-season opener.

“So don’t think of it as too big; I think of it as going out there and competing like you’ve been doing all your life, having fun, and just getting the win. I mean I love what I’m doing, and I’m not gonna let any moment get too big for me.”

Defensive back Julian Love said it’s important to know what your optimal “excitement” level is and not stray beyond that.

“I think everyone has their optimal hype zone from one through ten,” he said. “I think mine, leading up to the week, has been around a three or a four because you can’t be too amped up and you’ll wear yourself out.

“So I would like to maintain that then once we get to an hour before game time, you get to your optimal level so you can be just amped up enough without being too hyped.”