Getty New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll is managing several missing pieces.
There was a bit of good news for the New York Giants during Sunday’s training camp practice: Edge defender Azeez Ojulari (hamstring) was activated off the non-football injury (NFI) list.
The rest of the news was bad.
After losing three players — starting left guard Shane Lemieux (toe), backup offensive lineman Jamil Douglas (ankle) and rookie cornerback Cor’Dale Flott (groin) — during the team’s preseason opener against the New England Patriots last Thursday night, the Giants lost three more players to injury during practice on Sunday.
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According to Tom Rock of Newsday, the newly injured players are starting center Jon Feliciano (foot/ankle), linebacker Elerson Smith (arm) and defensive lineman Jihad Ward (unknown).
Practice ends for today. Saw three newplayers head in with new injuries or issues: Elerson Smith, Jihad Ward and Jon Feliciano. Looked like a right foot/ankle for Smith. Feliciano was having right arm looked at. Could not tell what ailed Ward.
Losing Lemieux and Feliciano in a matter of days is devastating for an offensive line that was starting to come together. The Giants finished Sunday’s practice with third-year pro Ben Bredeson at center and veteran Max Garcia at left guard, according to Talkin’ Giants on Twitter.
As the injuries start to mount for the Giants, the pressure is on head coach Brian Daboll to manage the missing pieces and still field a competitive lineup.
Brian Daboll Provides Update on Kadarius Toney, Other Injured Players
When it came to injury updates, Brian Daboll had a lot to unpack on Sunday. The first-year head coach confirmed that Shane Lemieux and Jamil Douglas will miss the entire week of practice, with Lemieux’s injury potentially stretching into the regular season.
Via Pat Leonard of The New York Daily News:
Brian Daboll says #Giants starting LG Shane Lemieux and G Jamil Douglas likely won’t be out there this week. Says “we’ll see” when asked if Lemieux will linger into the regular season.
Said there will be 2 padded practice week, one in shells. Was scheduled to be 3, dialed back.
Also reported in that Twitter thread from Leonard, Daboll said he doesn’t expect wide receiver Kadarius Toney to practice this week. Toney had offseason knee surgery and was shut down last week, before the preseason opener against the Patriots.
Injuries and availability were major issues for Toney during his rookie season, as he played in just 10 games (four starts) after being selected in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. The Giants are going to play it safe with him and make sure he’s good to go for Week 1 against the Tennessee Titans on Sept. 11.
Other banged up players who were mentioned in Leonard’s Twitter thread included defensive lineman Leonard Williams and Justin Ellis (both worked on side with trainers), starting linebacker Blake Martinez (out) and wide receiver Darius Slayton (limited).
Dan Duggan of The Athletic added a few more names to the list of walking wounded: running back Matt Breida, wide receiver Austin Proehl, tight end Andre Miller, rookie offensive lineman Joshua Ezeudu, cornerback Rodarius Williams, safety Dane Belton, tight end Ricky Seals-Jones and linebacker Cam Brown.
With all of these injured players, Sunday’s practice was not a pretty one.
Daniel Jones Struggles Through Yet Another Rough Practice
The Giants are trying to give quarterback Daniel Jones one last chance, but that’s hard to do with so many missing players around him. Dan Duggan of The Athletic described Sunday’s practice as a “brutal day” for Jones and the rest of the Giants offense.
Just a brutal day for the Giants offense. Camp stats are what they are but I had Daniel Jones at 6-19 with two interceptions (Adoree’ Jackson, Darnay Holmes). Jones also had to scramble a handful of times because of protection issues.
“Just a brutal day for the Giants offense,” Duggan Tweeted. “Camp stats are what they are but I had Daniel Jones at 6-19 with two interceptions (Adoree’ Jackson, Darnay Holmes). Jones also had to scramble a handful of times because of protection issues.”
One player who is healthy but not giving Jones much help is wide receiver Kenny Golladay, who had zero catches on two targets during Sunday’s practice (per Jordan Raanan of ESPN).