The Giants got positive contributions from a wide range of players during Sunday’s 28-23 win over the Eagles, but rookie cornerback Eli Apple wasn’t on the list.
Apple appeared to be in the wrong spot on a Ryan Mathews touchdown run in the first half, got flagged for being offside in the third quarter and then found himself benched after whiffing on a tackle attempt during a 23-yard gain by Eagles wide receiver Nelson Agholor. All of that came after a week that saw Apple facing a lot of questions about his mother’s criticisms of the team’s decision to re-sign kicker Josh Brown and claim that they leaned on her son to keep her quiet.
Apple said that wasn’t the case during the week and said Sunday that the focus on his mom “wasn’t a distraction” heading into Sunday.
“It was not like that. It was on me,” Apple said, via the New York Daily News. “Just sometimes you’re out there just trying to do too much and thinking too much. It’s a good learning experience, so I’m going to get through it.”
The situation with his mom may be a new one, but Apple isn’t the first cornerback taken in the first round to struggle at points in his transition to the NFL. While a quieter week probably wouldn’t hurt, his ability to follow through on the learning experience is more likely to determine how things play out from here than his mother’s potshots at his bosses.
