Brandon Jacobs was back with the Giants on Wednesday, participating in his first official practice in his second stint with the team.
The scene was so familiar with Jacobs back in blue, his 6-foot-4 frame and hulking shoulders standing out so much from the running backs he towered over while taking handoffs and working on pass protection.
The No. 34 on his back was a strange sight — injured safety Stevie Brown currently occupies Jacobs’ old No. 27 — and the big, brash back could hardly believe it all was real.
“It feels like a dream. I still don’t think it’s real,” said Jacobs, who spent his first seven seasons with the Giants. “I feel like I’m on top of the world. I’m just happy to be back.I had plenty of opportunities to go elsewhere, but I wanted to be here.”
After being cut by the Giants after an unproductive 2011 season, Jacobs suffered a knee injury and only appeared in two games with the 49ers, getting five carries in a year he said was “cursed.”
Jacobs said he never thought his career was over during the troubled season, but said the experience in San Francisco was necessary for his maturation.
“I think of necessity he certainly is more humble,” said coach Tom Coughlin. “Brandon comes in at a time when a veteran running back with size is someone that can help us. He has been out of football for a while and is very anxious to have another opportunity and is willing to do whatever we ask him to do in order to help our team.”
“Quiet frankly, we need him to get ready to play. He wouldn’t be here if that wasn’t the case.”
Jacobs returned having lost approximately 30 pounds in the past month. Though he still needs to get back into “football shape,” Coughlin plans to have him ready for Sunday’s game against Denver.
Standing at his new locker, slotted next to defensive linemen, Jacobs repeatedly said he was “blessed,” but he still briefly transformed back to the bold back with two Super Bowl rings.
“I think I can be as productive as any running back in the National Football League,” said Jacobs. “That’s the way I feel now. I feel fast, my weight is down…. I feel good about this opportunityI have in front of me.”
Jacobs, the Giants’ all-time leader in rushing touchdowns, brings unparalleled experience to the team’s group of young running backs and a voice, Victor Cruz said, that carries enormous weight in the locker room.
Running back David Wilson echoed Cruz’s sentiments.
“That’s what a veteran is and you can use a guy like that to teach the younger guys and also help us go on out on the field,” Wilson said. “He knows how to handle certain situationsIn the heat of battle, he’s a guy with experience.”
Though Jacobs said he can relate to Wilson’s fumbling issues and has already talked to him to try and help, Coughlin and Jacobs both made clear it is not the reason he returned.
“I’m not really here to be a mentor to David,” said Jacobs. “I’m here to work with David, to team up with David. He’s a really talented guy and I’m really looking forward to working with him.”
That may first come on Sunday at MetLife Stadium. Jacobs was overwhelmed just envisioning it.
“I can’t even explain how it’s going to be because it’s going to be a great feeling,” he said. “I may cry. You never know what may happen, but I’m going to be happy. I’m going to be really happy.”