NY Giants Rush Exclusive Interview: Wide Receiver Mohamed Sanu
by Adam Nardelli | Contributor
With the New York Giants and the Cincinnati Bengals conducting joint practices together the second week of August, NY Giants Rush.com caught up with Bengals Wide Receiver and New Jersey’s own, Mohamed Sanu.
NYGR: Now that you’ve had a couple of practices under your belt, what were your first impressions of how training camp has gone so far? I know it’s early, but does it look like the team has taken good strides up to this point?
MS: Our team has taken great strides this off-season. We had a few bad injuries last year like Marvin Jones and Tyler Eifert, so having those guys back will be great for us this year. Gio (Bernard) was banged up last year too.
This off-season a lot of the skill position players joined Andy (Dalton) for training, so that helped us get on the same page before training camp even started. Watch out for the Bengals this year man!
NYGR: Has Coach Lewis done anything different this training camp that you had not seen him do in previous years?
MS: Coach Lewis has kept it pretty much the same. We make the playoffs every year, it’s just all about getting over that hump. We have to continue to fight later in the season, stay healthy, stay aggressive. Coach Lewis is a great coach. Having Hue Jackson on board has been amazing as well.
NYGR: Going into the 2015 season, your fourth year, did you do anything differently this off-season to try to take your game to another level? Your 2014 season was very productive.
MS: I really took my training to another level this off-season. I have a few trainers who helped me the entire off-season. I made it a point to work on my footwork this year with the Foot Doctor, Seth.
It’s all about footwork in the NFL, especially at the receiver position. I want to have the best footwork in the NFL. You can see a lot of our workouts on my Instagram too.
NYGR: In 2012, The Giants drafted Rueben Randle with the last pick of the 2nd round, twenty picks later the Bengals drafted you. You’re a Jersey guy…was there any thought that you would stay home in New Jersey and play for the Giants?
MS: I definitely thought the Giants would be interested in me. Rueben is a great player and he came from a big school with a lot of success, so I can’t be mad at them for taking him. Things have been great for me in Cincinnati. The fans are great, the people are nice, and we’ve had a lot of success.
NYGR: What do you think about the Giants corner backs, especially Prince Amukamara and Dominique Rodgers Cromartie? And have you faced either one of them before?
MS: First off, Prince Amukamara has a great name, Prince. My son is due the end of the week and that will be his nickname. Both those guys are great corner backs. The NFL as a whole is extremely competitive.
Not much separates one player from another. It’s all about the time you put into it from training camp to mid-season preparation. After practicing with the Giants, these guys are definitely going to be competitive.
NYGR: Do you have any personal relationships with any Giants players? And what’s your opinion on Tom Coughlin and the Giants?
MS: The joint practices were a lot of fun. It’s always good to get outside competition in training camp, it definitely pushes us to another level. I know Odell Beckham through Jeremy Hill so it was fun seeing him again.
I talked with Eli Manning for a little after the game too. Tom Coughlin is a great coach, he has 2 Super Bowl Rings and that’s all I really want right now.
NYGR: I know you’re not going to give me any trade secrets, but the Giants are inexperienced at safety. What did you do to get an edge on the Giants knowing they have young inexperienced but athletic safeties?
MS: I didn’t really get a chance to go up against their safeties much. When the regular season starts, our whole offensive team will put in a lot of effort in figuring out how to take advantage of situations. A lot of times it’s a team effort.
If we send AJ (Green) long and let me come across the middle, I need to rely on AJ to get the double team so I can work the slot. There are so many levels to football, plays, route running, whatever, it’s amazing how much goes into it.
NYGR: Let’s talk for a minute about your wide receiver brothers. NY Giants Wide Receiver, Odell Beckham Jr. had an eye-opening year last year. As a wider receiver in his 4th year, should Giants fans expect the same type of production from him? B) Cruz who is also a Jersey guy suffered a major knee injury. What should fans expect from Team Vic this year?
MS: I know Vic has been working really hard this year to come back from that injury. He’s a great guy with a lot of talent so I definitely think he will come back 100% healthy this year.
Odell is another really good player. I don’t see why he wouldn’t have another great year. His hands are huge, the way he catches the ball is really fun to watch. Defensive backs are not going to want to cover those two all season. Eli has some great receivers on his team.
NYGR: Knowing that you went to Rutgers, and that I go to Rutgers right now, I was wondering if there was someone we should be looking for from this year’s RU team?
MS: Well , next year my nephew, Mohamad Jabbie is going to Rutgers. Keep an eye on him now! He’s going to have a big year at South Brunswick this year. He trained with us all off-season. It was a bunch of NFL players and one high schooler.
Rutgers hopefully will have a great year though. I worked out with some of their players this offseason and they have a lot of fight in them. They want to get better and that was obvious by how hard they work in the off-season.
NYGR: You’re a New Jersey native, what’s your beach of choice down at the Jersey Shore? Did you grow up a Giants fan or an Eagles fan? Any memories of Giants vs. Eagles as a kid?
MS: I didn’t really grow up a Giants or Eagles fan, I was a football fan. My family likes the Eagles over the Giants, but growing up in South Brunswick the whole town was a 50/50 split. Both teams have great fan bases.
I like all the beaches in New Jersey. I was at the Atlantic City beach a few days before I left for training camp. Wildwood, Belmar, you can’t go wrong at the Jersey Shore.
NYGR: You became a social media celebrity for a few weeks. Tell us about that.
I had to let people know I’m talented in every sport! I kicked a 60-yard field goal, hit a basketball shot from a pool deck, and can bend a soccer ball like Beckham. I wanted to show people how far I can throw a football, but I’m going to save that for next year.
NYGR: Lastly, I follow you on Instagram and saw that you’re expecting a new addition to the family… so first and foremost congratulations! How’s preparing to be a dad going?
MS: Thank you! I really can’t wait man. He’s due this Friday (August 21st) so it’s a really exciting time right now. My birthday is the 23rd so it’s going to be a lot of fun celebrating birthday’s right next to each other.
The house is all set for him to come home. Everyone is excited. Preparing to be a dad is a lot of fun. I can’t wait to teach him how to be a man. He’s going to be a beast!!
NYGR: Have a great season and thank you for checking in with NY Giants Rush.