Giant Football Blog

LB Boley out with hip surgery

The Giants announced this afternoon linebacker Michael Boley, a free-agent acquisition who is slated as the starter on the weak side, has undergone arthroscopic hip surgery to repair a torn labrum and will be out for 8-10 weeks. The surgery was performed today by team physician Dr. Bryan Kelly at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan.

With training camp set to begin on Aug. 1, it appears Boley will be sidelined for most, if not all, of the time in Albany. The regular season is slightly less than 12 weeks away, so the Giants are hopeful Boley will be back by then.

Boley missed a week of organized team activities (OTAs) earlier this month with what appeared to be a minor hip issue. Boley returned to the field and participated in the team's mandatory minicamp last week. Obviously, the injury continued to nag him. Continue

Giants look forward to Osi return

With the absence of Plaxico Burress often given as a reason why the Giants didn't return to the Super Bowl last season, it is easy to forget that the team was without another All-Pro: Osi Umenyiora. Unlike Burress, the team will have Umenyiora back in uniform this year, and after not having played a game since his knee injury in the 2008 preseason, Umenyiora is happy to get back on the field.

"It feels good to be out there with the rest of the guys," Umenyiora said. "I have been out there for a couple of weeks, so everything feels good. It feels like I am ready to go."

The Giants lost Umenyiora last year when he suffered a torn lateral meniscus Aug. 23 in a preseason game against the Jets. The defensive end was coming off a season in which he had 13 sacks and made the Pro Bowl. Continue

Rookies getting injured at minicamp

There were 14 players in the rehab area of the Giants practice field Wednesday on the second day of mandatory minicamp. That's roughly 15 percent of the total roster.

Some of those players were veterans, like cornerback Corey Webster and defensive tackles Fred Robbins and Barry Cofield, who aren't missing much at this time of the year. But two rookies who were high draft picks and expected to contribute immediately (linebacker Clint Sintim and tight end Travis Beckum), as well as offensive tackle William Beatty, a second-round pick, are missing valuable time right now. Continue

Robbins no lock after surgery

Fred Robbins' arthroscopic knee surgery was actually a "microfracture" procedure, which could cause the Giants defensive tackle to miss the start of training camp and may put his future in doubt.

The 32-year-old revealed that in a blog this week and said his knee is "getting strong and healthier each day." However, it often takes six months to recover from the procedure, which would push Robbins' recovery close to the start of camp on Aug. 3. Many athletes have taken even longer, and some have never been the same after the surgery. Continue

Osi is back

On the first day of the Giants' offseason workouts, Osi Umenyiora walked into the weight room and told Justin Tuck he's stronger than him.

"Right now, he is. But if you think about it he's had six months of training," Tuck said Tuesday. "I've been beat up for the last six months."

Umenyiora missed all of last season with a knee injury. And while rehabbing, he's done plenty of upper-body workouts to keep himself in shape as much as possible.

"Osi's been benching since the fall, so he's been bragging about how strong he is," backup defensive end Dave Tollefson said. "But when Tuck and I were doing squats, he wouldn't come within a 5-yard radius of us." Continue

Osi on right track

The free-agent signing period begins tomorrow at midnight and the Giants can dive in feeling confident that they have a full complement of defensive ends, which will free them up to concentrate on bolstering the linebacker and defensive tackle positions.

This was certainly not the case down the stretch of last season, when Justin Tuck was laboring with a bad knee and lower leg, Mathias Kiwanuka was dragging to the finish of his first full NFL season as a starter and there was no quality third player in the rotation.

Tuck is on the mend and does not require surgery, Kiwanuka will remain at his natural end spot rather than revive the experiment of moving him to strong-side linebacker and Osi Umenyiora is on pace to return at full strength. Continue

Brandon Jacobs and Domenik Hixon sit out another practice

RB Brandon Jacobs and WR Domenik Hixon missed practice for the second straight day due to injuries. Jacobs wants to play Sunday but is nursing a knee injury, while Hixon is dealing with an ankle/foot ailment.

"(Jacobs) feels a little better each day," Tom Coughlin said. "We will see how he is (Friday)."Coughlin said Hixon could have practiced Thursday, but the team doctor wanted the wideout to rest another day. Continue

Giants receiver Plaxico Burress accidentally shoots himself in the leg

Talented but troubled Giants wideout Plaxico Burress, adding to his litany of off-field woes, accidentally shot himself in the leg on Friday night, a source told the Daily News on Saturday.

Burress, 31, spent the night at a Manhattan hospital with the self-inflicted wound, according to the source. The injury was described only as non-life-threatening, and details of the accident remained sketchy.

The gun apparently discharged while Burress was inside the Latin Quarter, a midtown nightclub on Lexington Ave., ESPN.com reported. The club's Web site advertises Friday as Latin night, with "sportsmen galore" and "man hands pulling lady legs around their waists."Police were investigating the incident along with NFL officials. "We are gathering information, just like everyone else," said NFL spokesman Joe Browne. Continue

Plax definitely out; Jacobs likely to play

The Giants won last week without two of their most valuable offensive pieces. They might have to try and do it again Sunday.

Plaxico Burress will not play against the Redskins and running back Brandon Jacobs has been deemed "questionable" for the NFC East game.

"He's progressing, no doubt," Tom Coughlin said of Burress on Friday before the official announcement that he will sit out. "He's getting better. He is."

Just not quickly enough. Burress will miss Sunday's game in Washington with a sore hamstring. The wide receiver has not missed a game for health reasons since November 2006. Even last year, when he missed nearly every practice of the season with an ankle injury, he was available each Sunday. Continue

Jacobs, Bradshaw sit out, too

The MRI test administered Tuesday to Plaxico Burress revealed what everyone around the Giants already knew, that he has a right hamstring injury. Burress did not practice yesterday and is day-to-day as he rehabs his ailing leg.

"He is resilient, a very tough guy," Tom Coughlin said. "We're just going to have to wait and see. Hopefully this is something he can overcome in a short time. But let's face it, it's a hamstring."

Translation: There are no guarantees at all that Burress will be able to play in Sunday's game against the Redskins at FedEx Field. Burress lasted only three plays in last week's victory in Arizona before he took himself out of the game because he could not run anywhere close to full speed.

  Running back  Brandon Jacobs missed the game against the Cardinals with a swollen left knee, and he also sat out yesterday's practice. The expectation is that Jacobs will be able to practice today, when the Giants come in for a morning Thanksgiving Day workout before heading home early in the afternoon for the holiday. Continue