The New York Giants met Tuesday as a group for the first time this season, and defensive end Owa Odighizuwa was among those in attendance for the voluntary workouts. It’s an encouraging sign considering the ominous tweets he had fired off two weeks earlier.

Odighizuwa said he was taking time away from football. He apologized to Giants fans, prompting obvious questions about his future. Was he done for good? Did he want to play? What was the impetus for the unexpected tweets?

Odighizuwa was dealing with some “emotional things” at the time, a source told ESPN. But he was back on Day 1 of the offseason workout program handling business.

So were most of the Giants players. At least a few Giants players offered their support to Odighizuwa when they returned to the Quest Diagnostics Training Center on Tuesday. They’re optimistic he can help as a reserve lineman in what they hope will be an extended run this season.

“I just let him know I was here if he needs anything,” defensive end Romeo Okwara told Newsday at an event at the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan to announce the winning designs of the NFLxFIT Visual System Design Contest. “You never know what people are struggling with, you never know the full story, so I just reached out and let him know I was there for him.”

Odighizuwa enters what coach Ben McAdoo recently called a “big year” for his career. He is still searching for his first career sack.

Owa Odighizuwa attended the Giants' voluntary workouts Tuesday, two weeks after tweeting that he was taking time away from football. AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

The message

McAdoo addressed the team and told them to remember the feeling from last year, when they were blasted by the Green Bay Packers in the wild-card round of the postseason. They need to get better in order to avoid a repeat of the crashing conclusion to what was a promising year.

McAdoo stressed the need for constant improvement, according to several players. The slogan on the T-shirt he distributed said “Make Gains – 1% -- New York Football Giants.”

The point was that every day the Giants should be making at least a 1-percent gain. Progress is imperative. No remaining status quo even after they finished last season with an 11-5 record. There are improvements to be made.

That can start with the offense, which finished 26th in the NFL in points scored.

Not surprisingly, the Giants' most notable offseason acquisition was wide receiver Brandon Marshall. He was at the facility bright and early working alongside -- among others -- star wideout Odell Beckham Jr.