New York Giants

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The New England Patriots come to town tonight for a preseason game against the New York Giants, but please don't bring up February's Super Bowl. Continue reading "New York Giants vs. New England Patriots: don't call it a rematch" »

Antonio Pierce won't be playing in Thursday night's preseason finale because of a balky back, so he can wear anything he wants on the sideline. Even a fat, shiny Super Bowl ring made to Michael Strahan's "10-table" specifications, meaning it could be seen from 10 tables away in a restaurant.

And if it can be seen from that far away, you can bet the Patriots would get a good look at it from their sideline.

"What, you think I'd be giving the defensive signals like this?" Pierce said the other day while waving his hand in front of his face. "No, that thing is locked away in a (safe-deposit) box. You won't be seeing that."

Nor will anyone be seeing any gloating from the Giants in their first game against New England since they spoiled the Pats' perfect season in Super Bowl XLII, despite the fact part of them would definitely like to get the last laugh.

Continue reading "With Patriots in town, it's hard for Giants not to gloat a little" »

NEW YORK -- When it was mentioned this afternoon that he's probably "all Strahan-ed out," Giants defensive end Justin Tuck broke into a grin.

"Never," he said, laughing.

He's also not disappointed that Michael Strahan isn't returning for another season to compensate for the loss of Osi Umenyiora to a season-ending knee injury.

"I don't know if disappointed is the right word," Tuck said at the team's kickoff luncheon in Midtown Manhattan. "Obviously, we would love to have Stray back, he knows he's welcome anytime he wants to come back, but I think it was the right thing for him (to retire)."

Continue reading "Giants react to Strahan's non-return" »

Update 9:22 p.m.: A quick change. At the luncheon, the Giants inadvertently left TE Michael Matthews off the list of Rookie of the Year awardees, but he also was given a share.

Handed out today at the Giants kickoff luncheon in New York:

Team MVP: Eli Manning

Defensive player of the year: Osi Umenyiora and Antonio Pierce

Offensive player of the year: Split 6 ways between Plaxico Burress and starting O-Linemen David Diehl, Rich Seubert, Shaun O'Hara, Chris Snee, Kareem McKenzie

Rookie of year: Split eight ways between last year's draft class -- Aaron Ross, Steve Smith, Jay Alford, Zak DeOssie, Kevin Boss, Adam Koets, Michael Johnson and Ahmad Bradshaw

Special teams player of year: Chase Blackburn

New York Giants' wide receiver David Tyree will be sidelined for the first six weeks of the season after the Giants placed the Super Bowl hero on the reserved/PUP list.

Plus an update on Plaxico Burress and quick hits from practice.

Former Giants great: "It's best I stay retired"

Everybody in the Giants organization wanted Michael Strahan back. Everybody, including the guy he would have helped replace.

"It would have been cool to see him play, (but) I guess he couldn't do it without me," a laughing Osi Umenyiora told The Star-Ledger by phone yesterday, minutes after he learned Strahan had told the Giants he will remain retired. "Like he always said I couldn't do it without him, I guess there was no chance he could have come back and played without me."

Continue reading "Michael Strahan decided he won't return to New York Giants" »

So you're looking at the computer screen with a crooked look. You're looking for something deeper here to tell you why Michael Strahan didn't come back. It must've been a money thing, right?

Well, according to Strahan's agent, Tony Agnone, it wasn't.

"We talked money, but the money was secondary to whether he was actually coming back," Agnone said minutes ago. "First, you have to figure out if you can come back and he never really got past that point."

But Agnone did say Strahan almost got past that point.

"I think he was close (to returning)," Agnone said. "I think he was telling himself, 'Hey, I can make a difference.' But ultimately, you have to look at all the factors. And like I said before, after going out on top the way he did, he really separated himself from all of it. It just would have been too hard for him to get back to where he was."

MG

Giants GM Jerry Reese in a statement minutes ago about the re-retirement of Michael Strahan:

"We knew it was a long shot, but we owed it to ourselves to exhaust the possibility. We appreciate Michael even considering ending his retirement. He has a new career in front of him and we wish him nothing but the best. As we all said when he announced his retirement, Michael was and is a great Giant."

Wait. Did he just say "is?" Does that mean...no...it can't...can it? Could it be? Is this thing still alive???????

No. Go to sleep early and long tonight. I know I will.

MG

It ain't happenin'.

Michael Strahan has told FoxSports.com he's not coming out of retirement.

"This has been one of the toughest nights of my life," Strahan told the Web site from Greece. "But after long deliberation and throwing around a million scenarios in my head for the past day, I think it's just best if I stay retired.

"I have gone back and forth on this because as a player you'll always want to play, you'll never lose that urge to be out there. But I could only do this if I could commit 100 percent, physically, mentally, emotionally and I can't do that. I've tried to convince myself and my body to give it one more year, but in the end I just don't think I could turn it on like I need to again."

MG

Here's the end of the speculation that Osi Umenyiora might be back: The Giants have placed him on injured reserve, thus ending his 2008 season before it even began.

In addition to that move and the release of Michael Jennings plus their placing David Tyree on PUP/reserve, the Giants also waived/injured WR Craphonso Thorpe. As mentioned earlier, they signed LB James Terry from Youngstown State. And, moments ago, they announced they were awarded WR Marcus Monk off waivers from the Chicago Bears.

Monk (6-4, 212, Arkansas) was a seventh-round pick by the Bears in April. He caught 138 passes for 2,151 yards and a school-record 27 touchdowns for the Razorbacks.

MG

Giants LB Antonio Pierce was asked today about The Star-Ledger's recent report he's unhappy with his contract.

"Did somebody write that?" Pierce asked with a smirk before adding: "I'll leave that to Jerry Reese and (his agent) Drew Rosenhaus. I'm going to play football. Hopefully, those things take care of themselves in the long run."

Then, after a pause, he said, "Or hopefully, the short run."

Continue reading "Pierce doesn't deny contract issues with New York Giants" »

Gotta hand it to Jets owner Woody Johnson: He's really won the battle of the personal seat licenses with the Giants, his co-landlords at the new stadium under construction at the Meadowlands.

The Giants were first up to take the plunge, charging at least $1,000 per seat to the most loyal fans in the NFL. Such is the cost of doing business in today's NFL, the Mara and Tisch families sadly said. Never mind that the fans being charged up to $20,000 to retain their tickets have little problem with 32-year-old Giants Stadium and wonder why they're helping to foot the bill for the new digs..

Continue reading "Needell: PSLs, the Giants have a problem -- thanks to Jets" »

Following Maura McDermott's story on PSL price cuts for New York Jets fans, the New York Giants fan forum on NJ.com had plenty of opinions from the faithful fans of Big Blue. Continue reading "New York Giants fans sound off on New York Jets fans' PSL break" »

Encouraging news relayed by Tom Coughlin regarding Osi Umenyiora's surgery today.

"The doctors were very pleased, and the surgery went very well," the Giants coach said just after practice. "The knee looks good. They're very optimistic for a full recovery."

Umenyiora, who tore the lateral meniscus in his left knee Saturday against the Jets, hasn't been placed on injured reserve, but that is at least in part because Coughlin hasn't had a chance to meet with the doctors, team owners and GM Jerry Reese.

MG

On the day when the Giants roster needs to be pared to 75 players on the active list, the Giants placed WR David Tyree on PUP/reserve, meaning he is now sidelined until Week 6. The Giants will have a three-week window to active him. The Giants also waived S Terrance Stringer off IR.

Continue reading "New York Giants place Tyree on PUP/reserve" »

It's a sad day for BobNjAtlB. (See his comment below.) His man "One-Five" has been cut.

WR Michael Jennings, who beat the odds to make the roster two years ago and was on IR all of last year after tearing his Achilles' tendon in the preseason, was not at practice this morning and will officially be released at 4 p.m. today.

Jennings, 28, had five catches for 49 yards and two rushes for 12 yards in 2006. A former NFL Europe player who spent time on the practice squads of the Patriots, Ravens and Giants, Jennings was an entertaining personality best known for his gold teeth, monster truck with the huge wheels and the fact that he always showed up for training camp with his jersey number shaved into his head. The Jennings moment I'll never forget is when he made a turn onto Fifth Ave. as he arrived in his truck for the Giants' Super Bowl ring ceremony. He had the music blaring and his big wheels spinning.

Best of luck to Jennings from a guy who always enjoyed talking to him in the locker room.

Continue reading "New York Giants cut WR Jennings" »

In case you missed it, a state appeals court ruled today Michael Strahan "should not have to pay $18,000 a month in child support for his twin daughters, doesn't need to get a multi-million dollar disability insurance policy or pay for his ex-wife's lawyer in a bitterly-fought divorce."

Pay attention to that second graph that mentions "since Strahan had retired, the insurance policy wasn't necessary."

Continue reading "The most important part of the Strahan ruling?" »

A state appeals court ruled today retired Giants defensive end Michael Strahan should not have to pay $18,000 a month in child support for his twin daughters, doesn't need to get a multi-million dollar disability insurance policy or pay for his ex-wife's lawyer in a bitterly-fought divorce.

A three-judge panel of the New Jersey Appellate Division reversed the child support payments and said that since Strahan had retired, the insurance policy wasn't necessary. The text of the opinion is available.

Continue reading "Appeals court says Strahan shouldn't pay full child support, other costs" »

Reporter Jenny Vrentas gives insight on Plaxico Burress' return to a full practice schedule and the Giants lineback shuffle after Osi Umenyiora's season ending lateral meniscus tear.

Plus quick hits and an injury report from practice.

One Giants player returned to defensive end Monday. It remains unclear of another player (you know, THE player) will join him.

On a day when the Giants announced Mathias Kiwanuka has shifted from linebacker back to his natural spot at end, the team also reached out to retired future Hall of Famer Michael Strahan to see if he'd be interested in playing the role of savior in the wake of Osi Umenyiora's season-ending knee injury.

Strahan's agent, Tony Agnone, also spoke with the team Monday and said there was no resolution to the situation.

Continue reading "New York Giants reach out to retired Michael Strahan to return" »

Good God, I'm going to break the blog today.

But I couldn't leave this part out: WR Plaxico Burress (ankle) practiced fully today for the first time since, well, I don't even know but it was when it was cold outside.

"I decided to pull the old car out of the garage and see how I felt today - get some of the dust off of it," Burress said in the team's press release. "I felt pretty good. I'm feeling a lot better - a hundred percent. I didn't have any limitations going either way, right or left. I jumped up and made a few catches. I'm just trying to get back to my old self - getting off the line full speed and being able to accelerate when the ball is in the air. I'm trying to get all the kinks out of the armor.

"I forgot how tough it is to run routes when you're a little bit winded in the two-minute drill, even though I didn't go but a few plays. It's just good to get out there and run around again. I'm happy I can go out there and run without any pain. I'm basically trying to get into the best playing shape that I can and get my cardio up. I hope I feel pretty good tomorrow."

MG

Michael Strahan's agent, Tony Agnone, must have the greatest cell phone battery in history. His patience, though, is starting to wear thin. I didn't even have to ask the questions to start our phone conversation a few minutes ago.

"Have I talked to the Giants? Yes. Are we negotiating? No. Are they interested? Yes," Agnone said. "But who wouldn't be interested in Michael if they needed a D end?"

Continue reading "Strahan's agent: No decision yet after talking to New York Giants" »

The Giants haven't done anything with DE Osi Umenyiora yet, but they have waived three players: WR D.J. Hall, CB Miguel Scott and S Craig Dahl, who was waived-injured after tearing his ACL. All this according to someone who has seen the NFL waiver wire today.

Guess somebody got their info wrong on Hall here. I doubt Kevin Abrams would make a prediction like that. Whatever the case, he just didn't pan out.

By my calcluations, they have to rid themselves of two more players before tomorrow at 4 p.m. One of them will probably be Umenyiora, but you can't blame them for holding out to see how the surgery goes or to see if Mr. Miyagi can lay his hands on him.

5:47 p.m. UPDATE The Giants have confirmed the transactions mentioned above. No word yet on how their discussions with Michael Strahan or Mr. Miyagi are going.

6:51 p.m. UPDATE For some reason, NFL.com is saying the Giants have placed Umenyiora on IR. According to the Giants, that's not accurate. "We have not put him on IR," team VP of communications Pat Hanlon said in an e-mail minutes ago. Again, they're probably waiting to see how the surgery goes tomorrow. I doubt anything will change (and I'm sure they're in the same boat), but who knows?

MG

Ledger Live- 08-25-08

The lines of communication between Michael Strahan's camp and the New York Giants are open, at least in terms of trying to gauge whether Strahan wants to even consider coming out of retirement and rejoining the Super Bowl champions to pick up the slack left by the season-ending knee injury to DE Osi Umenyiora. Continue reading "Strahan's camp, New York Giants exchanging pleasantries" »

A state appeals court is expected to rule at 10 a.m. tomorrow on whether retired Giants defensive end Michael Strahan has to pay the $15.3 million awarded to his ex-wife in a bitterly-fought divorce.

Last year, A state Superior Court Judge awarded Jean Strahan the money and set child support set for their twin daughters at $18,000 a month.

Strahan paid more than half the award. He appealed, arguing the child support is too high, that she got everything she was due and is not entitled to $6.5 million from a pre-nuptial agreement. The payments have been on hold since he appealed.

Jean Strahan came out of the divorce case with custody of their children and possession of a mansion on Lloyd Road in Montclair, which was put on the market.

It's a sad day in Ledgerland and NJ.comville. The team portion of practice has been closed to the media, which means practice reports are done for the rest of the season. Sorry about that.

With that said, these guys were on the bikes, which means they won't practice today:

LBs Antonio Pierce (back), Danny Clark (groin) and Jonathan Goff (back), WR David Tyree (knee), CB Terrell Thomas (hamstring) and K Lawrence Tynes (knee).

MG

The New York Giants have reached out to Michael Strahan to discuss a potential return to the Giants, according to a report on The Daily News web site.

Continue reading "New York Giants talking to Michael Strahan about return, report says" »

Brett Favre believes Michael Strahan can still play. And who would know better, right? Continue reading "Favre thinks he's a "trend" setter for Strahan, New York Giants" »

Mathias Kiwanuka had to get to a meeting, so he only had a few seconds to speak to reporters. Here's everything (I swear) he had to say:

(On the move)
"Obviously, this isn't the way you want it to happen, but it's an opportunity for a lot of guys and a lot of guys have to step up and take advantage of it."

(On whether he was surprised by the swtch)
No, I was told all along, they didn't keep me in the dark at all, I was told all along that if something were to happen, that this is a position I could find myself in, so im ready to step in there and hopefully there wont be a letdown at all, so we just gotta get on and keep the ball moving.

Continue reading "New York Giants' Kiwanuka (briefly) on his move back to DE" »

I wonder if Danny Clark likes to play dominoes.

What I mean is he seemed to have a pretty good grasp for all the things that could have happened in the off-season to make him move from weak-side LB to the strong side: Michael Strahan retiring and the team toying with the option of moving Mathias Kiwanuka to defensive end for at least a few snaps here and there. Still, he didn't think he'd be starting on the strong side come Week 1.

"I did not," Clark said with a laugh. "I did understand the complex deal with Kiwi and if Stray didn't come back and he may move down to end and all that stuff. So I did understand Sam may be an option, but I was definitely focused on the Will linebacker. But I understand this is a business and I'm going to embrace it with open arms."

Continue reading "Clark embraces LB position switch for New York Giants" »

We don't know what's going on in the back rooms at Giants Stadium, where one co-owner, Steve Tisch, has said he's all for making a run at the retired Michael Strahan, while the other, John Mara, simply emailed me a "no comment" this morning.

Continue reading "If Strahan stays retired, moving Kiwanuka back to defensive end is the right move for the New York Giants" »

Giants coach Tom Coughlin said he hasn't spoken with retired DE Michael Strahan since he was on the sidelines for the team's preseason game against the Browns and he hasn't been involved in any effort to lure him back to the team.

"There hasn't been any discussion that I've been involved in there," Coughlin said after a morning walk-through. "We're going to explore every option that's available. The last time I talked with Michael, he had accepted his new challenge and was very happy about that."

Coughlin didn't want to speculate further about Strahan's intentions and said there is no time table for a decision on that front. He added that even though Strahan missed training camp last year, "his mentality was different."

Continue reading "Giants coach Tom Coughlin says nothing new on Strahan front; S Craig Dahl out with ACL tear" »

With Osi Umenyiora out for the season, Mathias Kiwanuka will move back to defensive end.

Tom Coughlin confirmed the team's decision to take Kiwanuka, drafted in 2006 as a defensive end, from linebacker and move him onto the defensive line. Kiwanuka spent his rookie season at DE, but then transitioned to outside linebacker during the past two training camps.

More to come.

MG

The potential that the New York Giants might try and lure Michael Strahan out of retirement is all over sports blogs on the web today as fans wait to hear about the next move between Big Blue and its ex-big star. Continue reading "Blogs buzzing with Michael Strahan, New York Giants speculation" »