New York Giants Injuries Are Cause For Conern

Heading into the first preseason game of the summer, the New York Giants knew that their defense was a work in progress. With Jason Pierre-Paul’s return to camp still up in the air, the defensive line has no proven defensive ends. The linebackers are always a question mark because of Jon Beason’s health. Last but not least, the secondary will be relying on players with very little experience at the backend, as no safety who started a game for the Giants last season returned.

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That made this offseason and training camp a very important one. Young players would be getting valuable reps as Tom Coughlin and Steve Spagnuolo needed to find a pair they could put their faith in to play the two safety spots. Injuries were the last thing they needed, but unfortunately that is what happened against the Cincinnati Bengals Friday early and often.

Already without Prince Amukamara because of a groin injury and Chykie Brown because of his knee, the Giants secondary was woefully thin heading into the game. They were hoping to leave the game unscathed, but that is the exact opposite of what happened.

The Giants secondary not only didn’t make it through without problems, they suffered a number of them. All in all, four players were forced from the game because of injury from the secondary, and all occurred before halftime. Second round pick Landon Collins injured his knee on the first series of the game the Giants defense played. He tried to come back, but was unable to continue. An X-Ray on the knee came back negative, but you can be assured he will undergo an MRI to make sure there isn’t any structural damage.

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Collins was the surest bet in a shaky Giants secondary to get playing time. Another player that was fighting for playing time alongside him was fellow 2015 NFL Draftee Mykkele Thompson, whom the Giants selected in the fifth round. Thompson needed to be carted off when he was injured, and it looks as though he may have suffered the most serious injury of all the players. He was crying while being carted off, as it appeared he injured his Achilles.

The Giants cornerbacks were also hit hard with injuries. Already without Amukamara and Brown, the Giants cannot afford to lose any more players here as their depth is not as strong as last season when they also had Walter Thurmond and Zach Bowman. The Giants now look like they will be without their leading slot corner, as Trumaine McBride injured his hamstring. He could go for tests today as well, but hamstring injuries are troublesome for cornerbacks because of the cutting and quick movement they are constantly doing.

Jayron Hosley quickly joined him on the sideline, as he was shaken up after a hit. He was being evaluated for a neck injury and concussion, which is serious in it’s own way. He is challenging not only for playing time, but fighting for his roster spot as he has done little to earn a place on the team outside of his draft pedigree; a third rounder in 2012.

At safety, the Giants elected to go with Bennett Jackson and Jeromy Miles. Miles has the most experience on the roster at safety, and will probably have an increased role if Collins is sidelined for any amount of time. Jackson is almost assured more playing time, but it may not come at safety. He is also in the running to play slot corner with McBride now sidelined as cornerback is his natural position; the Giants were spending this offseason converting him to safety, but may have to change those plans now.

Aug 14, 2015; Cincinnati, OH, USA; New York Giants safety Mykkele Thompson (27) is attended to after an injury during the second quarter of a preseason NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

One player who could factor into the picture at cornerback is Trevin Wade. He got beat on a long pass in the third quarter, but recovered nicely. He had a solid game overall, as he recorded a couple of pass breakups and intercepted a pass in the fourth quarter. He is one of the players that was lower on the depth but could move his way up because of injuries and strong play. He is a player to keep an eye on going forward if any of the players injured Friday are out for an extended period of time.

The Giant defense will not only suffer from this, but so will their special teams. Thompson was a special teams ace at Texas, which is part of the reason the Giants selected him in the draft. Players such as Jackson and Miles could have been used on special teams as well, but will not be taking on bigger roles defensively.

But because they will now be digging deeper into their already scarce depth to plug into the secondary, that means they will also be digging deeper to find players to play special teams. Special teams have been an area of concern for the Giants in recent seasons, and they tried their best to shore it up in the offseason with free agent signings but injuries are once again derailing their plans.

The Giants were hit hard at a position they couldn’t afford to be in the secondary. How will Tom Coughlin and his staff regroup and get these players ready? It will be interesting to watch because he will be going much further down his depth chart that he had hoped he would be doing, especially this early in the process. The only silver lining to come out of this is that it happened relatively early in training camp, but having no injuries would have been a better outcome.

Next: 5 Takeaways From Giants First Preseason Game

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