John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

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By Matt Lombardo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Free safety is one of the few starting jobs still up for grabs as the Giants enter Week 2 of the preseason, with Darian Thompson, Andrew Adams, Curtis Riley, Michael Thomas, and even William Gay getting a crack at first-team reps in practice.

While the reps have been divided during each training camp session, Adams started the preseason fast by leading the Giants with six tackles in last Thursday's 20-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns.

“I think it went well,” Adams said of his performance against the Browns. “I still had a couple of errors that I need to clean up personally, and some small details that I need to clean up. There’s always room for improvement. I took a good step. I wish to keep climbing once we get to Detroit.”

Adams and the rest of the Giants will practice with the Lions ahead of Friday night’s exhibition game at Ford Field, and after showcasing his physicality against the Browns, he hopes to flash the ability to make big-plays in coverage to help prove to the coaching staff that he can be a complete safety.

“Ball-skills. I think I showed that I can tackle, and get to the ball. Now, I just have to make some plays on the ball, and we’ll be all set.”

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Adams' mission this summer is to return to the starting lineup, where he spent 12 games as a rookie in 2016 before getting supplanted by Thompson for that role last season.

For Adams, training camp this summer isn't just about staking his claim to a starting, role but also move one step closer to shedding the label of undrafted rookie free agent, which he entered the league under in two years ago.

Likewise, this year is significantly different because for the first team, he is teammates with his brother in law; linebacker Alec Ogletree, after the Giants acquired the veteran via trade back in March.

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Ogletree and Adams came into the league under vastly different circumstances, with Ogletree chosen by the Rams with the 30th overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft.

While Adams says that he hasn't discussed their different paths to the league with Ogletree, he certainly feels a different kind of pressure than his brother in law, who was named a second-team All-Pro in his third season after being chosen in the first-round.

“We haven’t really compared it between ourselves," Adams said Sunday I would say that an undrafted grind is different than a first-round grind. If you’re undrafted, you have to constantly prove yourself. There’s very little room for error. First-round draft picks, there are only so many times to rep something to get it right. It’s two different experiences, but, we’re both here. We’re both New York Giants. By that meaning, it’s the same experience, because we’re both in here fighting for the same goal.”

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In addition to being able to lean on Ogletree while he battles the likes of Thompson, Thomas, Gay, and Riley for the starting job, having family around has made the grind of every day NFL life much easier for Adams.

“It’s great, Alec doesn’t live too far from me, so my sister’s close," Adams said. "It’s great because now my family doesn’t have to decide whether to go to LA for the Rams or come to New York and watch me, we’re all right here. It’s one big family for the games.”

If Adams is going to join Ogletree in the Giants' starting lineup on defense, he's going to have to once again separate himself from the pack and build on a solid start to the preseason.

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Head coach Pat Shurmur, defensive coordinator James Bettcher, and the rest of the Giants' staff has preached the value of consistency in practice each day as a way for players to separate themselves in position battles, which is exactly what Adams has set out to do this summer ... All while mastering the intricacies of a new defensive scheme.

“Just learning the defense," Adams said was one of the bigger challenges of this camp. "It’s still football, so it’s the same in that aspect. Coach Bettcher has a lot of moving pieces, so you have to learn that. Once you learn the concepts of the defense, it becomes about playing ball. There’s not a lot of memorization, it kind of comes to you. That’s a good thing. That’s probably the newest thing for me.”

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Entrenched in a position battle that has dated back to the spring, and with plenty of opportunity to win the job out of the preseason, Adams says that he feels good about what he's put on film so far as well as hopeful about what the final three weeks of practice and three exhibition games have a chance to mean for him heading into the season.

“I do," Adams said, when asked if he feels good about what he's put on tape for the coaches so far. "There’s always clips that you wish you could have back, but that’s football. If you’re playing defensive back, you’re going to make some errors at some point. So far, I like my tape, and I just want to keep improving.”

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Matt Lombardo may be reached at MLombardo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattLombardoNFL

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Matt Lombardo | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

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