The word “swag” has a variety of meanings, none of which are pertinent to its usage here in 2012. Ultimately, the concept behind “swag” is exude confidence to a near egotistical level. For football players, it also needs to translate to their play on the field, and that’s exactly what the New York Giants want to see more of from second-year cornerback Prince Amukamara.
“I think he’s doing pretty good,” Justin Tuck said. “Obviously you would like to see him be a little bit more vocal, a little bit more — as the young kids say — ‘swag.’ “
Some of the reasons given for Amukamara’s recent swim in the ice tub was to help him develop more of an edge – or “swag” as it were. In the video, teammates can be heard encouraging him to stand up for himself, and although he didn’t, it’s not going to stop them -especially the cornerbacks- from demanding more out of him.
“It’s a cornerback thing. We’re going out there every play alone. D-linemen have linebackers behind them. Linebackers have safeties behind them. Most of the time [at corner] it’s just you out there, so you’ve got to have that kind of arrogance, the kind of confidence to go out and get that job done,” Corey Webster said.
From a personality standpoint, Prince is a little different. He tends to be a little more shy, he still gets overwhelmed by the love he receives from fans and, as we’ve seen on video, takes some loving punishment from his teammates. But if we’ve learned anything from quarterback Eli Manning it’s that you don’t have to dominate a game with your personality, you just have to dominate it with your talent. And talent is something Amukamara doesn’t lack.
“I do get told that cornerbacks are supposed to just have the most ‘swag’ and a lot of confidence,” Amukamara said. “I think that just develops through your play. If you make plays, the more confidence that you get. I think I have it. I probably don’t show it on the outside. But I think my play shows it the most.”
The swag will come. It may take some time, but it will come.
Photo Credit: Mike Gannon
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