Pat Shurmur: Giants’ RB Jonathan Stewart can still “play at a high level

” The lack of production from veteran running back Jonathan Stewart (10 carries http://www.authenticsnewyorkgiants.com/cheap-ray-ray-armstrong-jersey , -5 yards this preseason, including a costly fumble on Friday night vs. the New York Jets) has New York Giants fans up in arms. The Giants signed Stewart, who spent 10 seasons with the Carolina Panthers, to a two-year, $6.8 million contract in the offseason.Off what we have seen so far, and with Friday’s three-carry, -7 yard performance fresh in our minds, Giants coach Pat Shurmur was asked during his media conference call on Saturday to assess the play of the 31-year-old Stewart.Shurmur is putting more stock in Stewart’s pedigree than his preseason numbers.“I just think he’s a veteran player and he’s played really well for a lot of seasons. If you just look at the raw production you say “oh my goodness,” but I think we’ve just gotta take it for what it is,” the coach said. “I know he can play football and play at a high level. We’re just counting on that.”That would indicate that despite Stewart’s struggles it is a pretty safe bet that he will be part of the season-opening 53-man roster.Here are more takeaways from Shurmur’s Saturday afternoon conference call.On the struggles with run blocking “We need to do a better job in all areas, whether it’s getting on the right people. There weren’t really missed assignments, so to speak, we’ve just really gotta get off the double teams a little quicker and hit it up in there and give the runner a little more room to get his feet going.”On the effective use of play-action passing “First off I got to it a little quicker. They [the Jets] were playing the run. The good news is some of our play actions were believable and that allowed us to get down the field a little bit with a little extra protection and then hit on some of our deep balls.“There’s some games where it’s more effective than others. They were making a very strong effort to stop the run http://www.authenticsnewyorkgiants.com/cheap-b.j.-goodson-jersey , so the next phase of it is try to take advantage of that a little bit.”On moving Eli Manning out of the pocket occasionally “I believe every quarterback needs to use his legs to some degree. And I do believe you have to move the launch point for the throws, which sometimes means the play-action game or moving the pocket. I believe in that, and I do believe any quarterback can do it to some degree. Eli moves around well enough to where he can execute some of that stuff.”John Jenkins: 4 things to know about Giants new defensive tackle Who would be the backup for Damon Harrison at nose tackle? That was one of the many questions the Giants faced this summer. B.J. Hill? Well, yeah, except he earned a starting job next to ‘Snacks.’ Veterans A.J. Francis and Robert Thomas. Nah, waived. Josh Banks? His time on the roster last about a day.That job will apparently fall to John Jenkins, a 2013 third-round pick of the New Orleans Saints who spent the last two seasons with the Chicago Bears. We turned to Lester Wiltfong of SB Nation’s Bears website, Windy City Gridiron, to learn more about the 6-foot-3, 327-pound 29-year-old.Ed: Why did the Bears let him go?Lester: Jenkins only really played as Eddie Goldman’s back up at nose tackle last year. He had 109 snaps on defense last year, while playing in eight games, and while I thought he was decent while in there, the Bears decided to keep a more versatile sixth defensive lineman. Ed: What are his strengths? Weaknesses?Lester: He’s good against the run http://www.authenticsnewyorkgiants.com/cheap-kerry-wynn-jersey , as can be expected at 330 pounds. His weaknesses are that he’s really only a 1st down or goal line player. Not must versatility from him. Ed: The Giants will likely use him to spell Damon Harrison at the nose. Is that a role in which he should succeed?Lester: If that’s the plan, he’ll be a fine player for the Giants. A few snaps here and there, a spot start if Harrison is hurt, and that’s exactly what his role should be.Ed: What can you tell us about him off the field? What kind of guy is he?Lester: Honestly, there wasn’t known about him during his year in Chicago. He’s a head down and play football kind of guy. Finally, a bonus question I couldn’t help tossing out for Lester to have some fun with.Ed: Couldn’t the Bears have waited until a year when they don’t play the Giants to trade for Khalil Mack? Lester:Nope! The Bears feel they are ready to compete this season. They have the head coach and quarterback in place that they believe in, they added a bunch of talent to the offense in the offseason, they kept a good defense intact -- including defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, they spent their first round pick on Roquan Smith, and now Khalil Mack shores up their glaring weakness of who is going to get consistent pressure.