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New York Giants Rumors: Jason Pierre-Paul Returning vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers?

By Kenneth Teape

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New York Giants Rumors: Could Jason Pierre-Paul be making his 2015 season debut this weekend against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers? Things are certainly looking like it is a strong possibility.

The New York Giants pass rush has been abysmal all season. Despite the gruesome injury that Jason Pierre-Paul suffered, he should be able to help out the team despite the limitations that he has. When will that help come for the Giants? It could be this week against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

According to Dan Graziano of ESPN New York, the Giants have been ramping up Pierre-Paul’s reps in practice and accelerating his practice schedule. The reason behind it is to see if he can whether is he capable of suiting up to play against the Buccaneers on Sunday afternoon. Pierre-Paul was with the team for the first time last week since his Fourth of July fireworks incident, but it seems as if the Giants want to see what he really has.

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Pierre-Paul reported in very good physical shape, as he worked out a ton on his own while away from the team. It was an impressive feat since he was probably limited in what he could do weightlifting wise, but his conditioning was good from the Giants are saying. The only thing that seems to be holding Pierre-Paul back at this time, is his knowledge of the playbook under Steve Spagnuolo. Pierre-Paul was still in college when Spagnuolo was leading the Giants defense the first time around, so he has some learning to do.

There is no guarantee that he will suit up, but the Giants will surely see if he is capable of doing so. Wednesday morning, head coach Tom Coughlin said, “He’s going to practice. He’ll practice today, he’ll practice tomorrow, he’ll get a good number of reps, and we’ll take it from there.”

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The Giants want to make sure that Pierre-Paul is capable of playing not only from a conditioning standpoint, but from a physical one as well. They will not put him out there if they feel he could re-injure himself; as long as there is an risk to himself, the Giants will probably hold off on using him.

The Giants will do everything they can to get a good evaluation of that, even going as far as holding extra padded practices. They have held two extra ones in the past five days to get him extra work, and people who have been able to see him work, media and teammates like, have said he looks outstanding. He will be working with the first team defense and scout team Wednesday at practice as the Giants want to get him up to speed as quickly as possible.

While things seem to be pointing the right direction for Pierre-Paul suiting up, he took a more tempered approach when asked about the possibility of him playing Sunday, saying, “It depends. Maybe. It’s up to the medical staff. They’re taking me slowly. I want to play, absolutely, but as of now, they’re taking it slowly. Coming off any injury, you’ve just got to go out there and get to the point where you’re confident.”

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That is exactly what the Giants are doing right now. They are getting Pierre-Paul reps, and also working on a number of different gloves and devices to make sure his injured hand is protected. This will be a story to keep an eye on throughout the week. With every passing day that Pierre-Paul isn’t ruled out, the chances of him suiting up for the first time in 2015 rises.

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