Pat Shurmur still thinks there’s value in the preseason.Unless you’re really

Youth Mark Bavaro Jerseys , really important, at least.Via Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.com, the Giants coach was willing to stand against the tide and defend the sanctity of preseason football, which has come under attack as more and more coaches bench more and more meaningful players.“You can’t fake football,” Shurmur said. “And it’s something that you’ve got to play together. I do think there’s benefit to all the players playing — or most all of the players playing — in preseason.”Shurmur has been willing to create an exception to his own rule. While he’s playing quarterback Eli Manning, running back Saquon Barkley hasn’t played yet in the preseason and isn’t expected to.“They’re at two different positions,” Shurmur said. “So like anything, you think of the team and you think of the individual and how it affects them. The quarterback does a lot of directing. There’s a lot that he does that’s important for the whole team to function. There’s other position groups where they’re involved with the scheme, but it’s not always quite as integral as it is with other positions.”While there’s always the assumption of risk — which exists on the practice field as well as during meaningless games — Shurmur thinks the games retain value for some players.“Absolutely,” he said. “You know, it’s the coordination of playing more than just the individual skills that the players go through. And there’s going to the game knowing you’ve got to play and preparing your mind to play the game. Guys that know they’re not playing in the game Mark Bavaro Jerseys Stitched , they can’t help it. It’s human nature. Their mindset won’t be as tight as someone who knows they’re playing.“So there’s something to be learned from that, whether they play a bunch [in the preseason game] or not.”And, of course, if you’re indispensable, the rules are different. It has been a long time since Eli Manning has had to compete for his job. Manning, 38, has started 230 of a possible 240 games in 15 seasons.But the Giants didn’t draft Daniel Jones with the sixth overall choice to sit for long. As the Giants left the offseason program a couple of weeks ago, coach Pat Shurmur indicated Manning and Jones will compete for the starting job.Manning, though, doesn’t sound as if he’s worried about losing his job.“I mean no, I don’t feel like it’s a competition Color Rush Darius Slayton Jersey ,” Manning told Rhett Lewis of NFL Network on Friday at the Manning Passing Academy. “I feel like I’ve got to do my job and I’ve got to compete every day and try to get better every day. That’s the way it’s been my whole life, and that’s just the way I’ve always approached practice every day to improve, to earn my place on the team, to earn the respect of the teammates and do it each year.”Manning, who threw 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last season, has no problem helping Jones, even though he knows eventually the former Duke quarterback will replace him. Manning is just trying to make sure it’s later than sooner. “We’ve got new guys and I’m trying to build a relationship with them and get them up to speed and so I’m trying to do my job in the quarterback room,” Manning said. “I’ve always been good with young quarterbacks, whoever’s been in there, trying to get them up to speed, teaching them about defenses or styles or what our defense plays. So I’m doing the same thing with Daniel and I’m going to be a good teammate Youth Darius Slayton Jersey , I’m going to do the best that I can do and help everybody on the Giants be successful.”Manning was in the same situation as Jones in 2004 when the Giants traded for the No. 1 overall pick as their franchise quarterback. He competed with Kurt Warner for the job, taking over as the starter for the final nine games as a rookie.“Definitely drawing back on that and I talk to Daniel and I see so many similarities in the situation and how things are going and just what he’s trying to do, his personality,” Manning said. “He’s coming into this team; he’s just trying to learn the playbook, learn the names of everybody, got to earn the respect of his teammates. He’s got so much going on. He’s got the New York media, dealing with them; all of a sudden they’re saying things Day One. . . .So just work hard, take your job seriously, but don’t take yourself too seriously — if you can do that — enjoy your teammates, listen to your coaches and we’re all in this together and we’ll get through it.”