‘I’m locked in’: Why Cole Beasley believes he’s ready to make most of NY Giants chance

EAST RUTHERFORD – Cole Beasley and the New York Giants flirted with one another for weeks last season.

There was the allure for Beasley to rejoin coach Brian Daboll here, but considering his age and unexpected longevity in the league, especially for an undersized, undrafted player from SMU, the desire to cash in one final time on the heels of a highly productive campaign in Buffalo was stronger.

The Giants offered Beasley a spot on the practice squad, where he could get acclimated to the game after missing an entire offseason program, plus training camp. The plan, if things worked out, would then have been for Beasley to earn his way to the active roster and ultimately become someone Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka could count on within an injury-depleted receiving group.

“If I could do it again, I’d have come here when I had the chance last year,” Beasley told NorthJersey.com following Wednesday’s practice session that opened training camp.

Instead of a reunion with Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen, Beasley opted to join the practice squad in Tampa Bay. He played two games for the Buccaneers before announcing his retirement.

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Beasley reconsidered two months later, heading back up to Buffalo where he played in two regular season games and two more in the playoffs. The 34-year-old made an impact in the postseason, finishing with five catches for 58 yards and one touchdown in the Bills’ two playoff games, including two big catches in the second half of Buffalo’s wild-card win over Miami.

“It was a tough transition for me last year,” Beasley said. “I was one foot in, one foot out. Am I retiring, am I not? Last year didn’t work out the way I thought it would.”

In hindsight, Beasley believes his decision to play the waiting game and not join a team until the regular season left him in a never-ending game of catch up. That’s why he prioritized getting into a camp this summer, and he beat that deadline by agreeing to a one-year deal worth $1.165 million, an individual with knowledge of the terms told NorthJersey.com. The contract is not guaranteed until Week 1, so Beasley knows what’s at stake.

“After 82 catches, I thought I’d have a home somewhere,” Beasley said. “It didn’t work out that way, and it was a real humbling experience. Gave me a lot of time to think and put things in perspective. Got in a space that I shouldn’t be, and it really hurt me. Just glad to have this opportunity, and I’m locked in and ready to go.”

Beasley finds himself in a deep competition at a position that features plenty of options in the slot. Still, it would not be a surprise if a crafty veteran with familiarity in this offense – “a few wrinkles here and there, but almost identical to what we did with Dabs in Buffalo” – starts carving out a role for himself.

He faced a learning curve with quarterbacks Dak Prescott in Dallas, then with Josh Allen in Buffalo and Tom Brady in Tampa. Now the challenge is to get on the same page with Daniel Jones as quickly as possible. They spent time together after practice working on timing and routes Wednesday, and that should continue throughout camp.

Jones and Beasley connected for a touchdown on the fourth play of 7-on-7 drills Wednesday when Beasley came streaking across the middle of the end zone with Darnay Holmes on his hip.

“I told [Daboll], I just gotta get the ball and my eyes need to adjust,” Beasley said. “Just getting open, seeing how coverages develop and the timing of everything, that’s easy right now. I’ve just got to get used to the ball coming at me again. Feels good, and I just was happy to get one come my way [Wednesday]. Daniel’s a more cerebral guy, likes to talk things out and I love that. Only helps me, a lot of the routes I run, it’s a lot of options. He needs to know what I’m thinking, I need to know what he’s thinking. He’s got a strong arm, good accuracy out there. I just gotta get used to seeing his ball, he was humming it. Love what I’ve seen so far.”

The challenge facing Beasley now: making the most of every chance he gets.

“I’m just taking one play at a time. Not even one day, really, but one play at a time,” Beasley said. “I feel like that’s the best way to approach anything. I’ll just keep building off that every minute I’ve got. I’ve always had confidence in my abilities, and if I didn’t think I could do it, I wouldn’t be here. For me, I’ve always had that chip on my shoulder. Nobody ever said I was gonna be here in the NFL this long, and here I am. There’s always that same hunger, I’ll always have something to prove. If it’s not to other people, it’s to myself.”

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Cole Beasley: ‘Locked in’ to make most of this chance with NY Giants