T-Rock's Take on the Giants

Strahan is FINALLY coming back and all you die-harders would rather talk about singers and musicians in movies. Awesome.

rnargi, excellent contributions as always. Sinatra was great in Manchurian Candidate, which is a top-5 all-timer, no doubt.

Flea in Big Lebowski? Nice job, Hank. I'd add Flea and Henry Rollins in The Chase too.

And, since I always forget one important one, I'll add Alex Desert. He was Charles in Swingers and is one of the singers in a terrific band called Hepcat. They're so good even Clip-On Blauber could enjoy them, alongside his Steely Dan 8-tracks.

And now, for more Strahan stuff -- just that Tony Agnone, his agent, said 92 is on a plane back to NYC and will be officially part of the team as of tomorrow, even though nothing's going on (excellent timing!). So Monday he'll be in the locker room and we will be supplicating at his feet once more.

Unless he changes his mind, that's all for tonight.

The reports are flying (thanks for the heads up, Bill H.) and it seems that Ol' 92, Michael Strahan, will return on Monday.

Calls and e-mails are out to everyone... Will update as I hear it.

First, a celebrity sighting:

Walking back to my car at the row of restaurants off Rte. 3 near Giants Stadium, and an F-150 with gigantic rims rolls up. It's our old friend Michael Jennings, fresh off successful Achilles surgery and tooling around in one of his own custom Chevys.

Frankly, he could tear the other Achilles trying hop down out of the thing, but he was in good spirits. Always nice to see.

As to the rest of the crew... OL Guy Whimper has a high ankle sprain, but TC said Whimper was walking without crutches today, so maybe it won't be so bad.

Will Demps said he has full range of motion back in his arm and he's been doing his two-a-day rehab sessions to be ready for the opener. Still doubt the Giants will let him go full blast, but I'm betting he'll be in uniform.

Sam Madison said he's been doing some straight-ahead running, but nothing else yet. Seems to be a couple weeks away at least.

And E.J. Underwood has a little swelling on the side of his face, but nothing more. He said he's due back at work in a week or two. I'm assuming he'll still be here then.

TC expressed some frustration over Ol' 92 today, and this would obviously be the time the Giants would be most annoyed, since they have to craft a roster with one key player not in, but not out. Strahan can stay on the reserve/did not report list without counting against the 53-man roster, but once he decides he's coming back, someone has to be cut.

OK, on to the FridayList... Today's is a little complicated, but fun. Top 10 acting performances by singers/musicians. Bonus points for being in a good band and some acting chops. And there'll be no Beyonce, Eminem or Mariah Carey on this list -- you all should know by now that The FridayList is not a popularity contest.

10. Ice-T, New Jack City and Trespass. I know he's in that Law & Order spinoff, but for my money, nothing beats those two early-90s performances. Or "Body Count."

9. Michael Been (The Call), Last Temptation of Christ. Obscure but great band, obscure but great flick.

8. Eddie Vedder, Singles. "A compliment for us is a compliment for you." When you only have one line, better make it a good one. He did. Too bad Pearl Jam isn't relevant anymore.

7. Ludacris, Crash. Completely got screwed out of an Oscar nomination. At least he told Oprah to shut her yap when she ambushed him on her show.

6. John Doe, various films. Good character actor; great, important band (X) and solo artist.

5. Joe Strummer, Mystery Train . A musical god slouching his way through a funny, weird flick from the master of funny, weird flicks, Jim Jarmusch. Also note that Screamin' Jay Hawkins is in the same movie.

4. Ice Cube, Boyz N The Hood. Another excellent performance that was unrecognized by the big awards types. He's since soiled his ability as an actor with the Friday/Are We There Yet? stuff, and his music isn't as prolific or good as it used to be, but he was on top of both worlds there for a hot minute.

3. Alanis Morissette, Dogma. I'm not a tremendous fan of her music and this is a mess of a movie, but she plays God pretty well. I think. Her Curb Your Enthusiasm appearance gives her bonus points.

2. Diana Ross, The Wiz. Yes, she's done better stuff, but make your own list if you want. This movie (with Michael Jackson, who was also pretty darn good) is still one of my top-50 faves. She can sing pretty well too, I hear.

1. David Bowie, The Man Who Fell To Earth. Most odd-ball flick I've ever seen, and one of the most memorable. His music has the same effect.

Back with cuts and any 92 news tomorrow... Enjoy the weekend.

Burress, Robert Douglas, Sam Madison, E.J. Underwood, Will Demps, Reggie Torbor (calf), Kawika Mitchell, Gerris Wilkinson, Grey Ruegamer, David Tyree, Adrian Awasom

On with the show

And a drive to Foxboro kinda held me up correcting my mistake. See -- I knew I'd be an idiot somehow.

WR

In: Plax, Toomer, David Tyree, Steve Smith, Sinorice Moss, Anthony Mix

Out: Kevin McMahan

Why? Top five receivers get in. That's the top five.

OK, NOW we'll get inactives going in a bit.

Since I never did present a 53-man roster here, I'll run down the positions and see where I think everybody stands heading into tonight's game with the Pats. I hope to hear from all of you who think I have no idea what I'm talking about... In fact, I know I will.

QB

In: Eli, Jared Lorenzen

Out: Anthony Wright

Bubbling: Tim Hasselbeck.

Why? Wright hasn't proven he can be the backup, so there's no reason to keep him -- he gets a little credit for having to play behind a terrible group of O-linemen, but he needed to show a lot more than he has. Hasselbeck could stay for a simple reason: He's very tight with Manning and he's a sharp guy. Of course, there's a case for only keeping two QBs, since the roster is so depleted.

RB

In: Brandon Jacobs, Reuben Droughns, Derrick Ward, Ahmad Bradshaw

Out: Ryan Grant

Bubbling: Robert Douglas

Why? Ward has value as the kick returner; Grant is running in David Tyree's spot at gunner, but others can fill that role until Tyree returns. Grant has impressed so far, but it's a matter of numbers. Douglas is out a couple weeks after knee surgery and I don't really think he can handle the FB grind for a full season. He may end up being stashed on IR so the Giants can keep him around, because there's definitely potential there. Droughns and a TE can fill the blocking back role.

TE

In: Shockey, Kevin Boss, Michael Matthews

Out: Charles Davis

Why? The best three TEs make it. Matthews needs some seasoning, but he's got talent.

OL

In: David Diehl, Rich Seubert, Shaun O'Hara, Chris Snee, Kareem McKenzie, Grey Ruegamer, Zach Piller, Guy Whimper, Todd Londot

Out: Adam Koets, Jon Dunn, Matt Lentz

Why? I almost had them keeping 8 OL because there's so much depletion on D. But I think Londot makes it because he's a bit more versatile than Lentz. Don't think Koets needs to be kept and should end up on the practice squad. There's only one backup T in Whimper, but honestly, do you think any of the other guys who've played there showed they could do the job in an emergency?

K

In: Josh Huston

Out: Lawrence Tynes

Why? TC usually likes to have a guy who's a veteran over someone untested, but in this case, Huston is a safer choice. His kickoffs are better, plain and simple. And it's not exactly a set-in-stone gig, so they'll be trying out kickers for weeks, I'm sure.

P

In: Jeff Feagles

DE

In: Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, Adrian Awasom

Out: Tommy Davis, Marquies Gunn

Why? I still truly believe Strahan is coming back, though I'm becoming a little less sure with each passing day. The whole situation is getting more than a little silly, and I'm betting his teammates' good will would dry up if he strings everyone along right up until next Sunday, messing with the roster. In any event, the other three are in, even though Davis and Gunn each had some flashes in camp.

DT

In: Fred Robbins, Barry Cofield, William Joseph, Jay Alford, Manny Wright

Out: Jonas Seawright

Why? Wright is a gamble, but perhaps when there's far less pressure on him, he can succeed. Seawright slimmed down but he's still a head case as far as the coaching staff and front office are concerned. And who knew Willie Joe would end up being a lock? Actually, I think he's looked worse since sliding back to DT, so Robbins and Cofield better stay healthy.

LB

In: Antonio Pierce, Kawika Mitchell, Mathias Kiwanuka, Chase Blackburn, Reggie Torbor, Zak DeOssie, Gerris Wilkinson

Out: Tyson Smith

Why? Smith offers a lot as a special-teamer and depth LB, but it's numbers.

CB

In: Sam Madison, Corey Webster, R.W. McQuarters, Aaron Ross, Kevin Dockery, E.J. Underwood

Out: Gerrick McPhearson

Why? McPhearson needed a huge camp, and his recent minor injury sealed matters. He doesn't offer as much as Dockery or Underwood, who have injuries too but bigger upsides.

S

In: Gibril Wilson, James Butler, Will Demps, Michael Johnson

Out: Craig Dahl

Bubbling: J.R. Reed

Why? I think the Giants could use Reed, who's incredibly athletic and versatile. Johnson could be practice-squad material, but I think he's got enough of an upside not to make it through waivers. If the Giants go with 2 QBs, here's where the extra guy gets in. And yes, I'm saying that the Giants may have only a seventh-round pick as a backup safety in the opener.

So please, call me an idiot.

Be back with some inactives after a nice, leisurely drive.

That's according to Jerry Reese, who has had two phone conversations with No. 92 in the last two days.

The one this morning ended with Strahan telling Reese that his decision -- retire or return -- will be made in the next day or two. Both convos, according to Reese, were "constructive and positive."

What that means, we'll find out when Strahan gets here. If he gets here... Though I'm guessing the chats had something to do with rescinding a portion of the fines, now at $457,216, and perhaps Reese reiterating that Strahan is wanted here.

About to head into the locker room... More later.

The big fella was carted off before practice even started with dehydration, but I think he'll be OK.

Plaxico Burress was back at the ranch today, getting treatment on his lower back. No timetable for him.

And the last roster move is apparently going to be Ryan Kuehl (calf) going on injured reserve. So all the rest of the upright Giants will stick around until final cuts on Saturday. Kuehl is the eighth Giant on IR already. Two more and they get a free mocachino, I think.

The fact that Underwood, who had surgery to repair a broken jaw yesterday, could be back practicing before the season begins was about the only good injury news the Giants got today.

WR David Tyree has a broken left wrist and is out 4-6 weeks.

WR Plaxico Burress was in the city today having his back checked out. Not the flu, as was reported as the reason for him missing Saturday's game, but his back, which has been acting up for several days.

FB Robert Douglas will have one of his knees 'scoped, meaning he's out a minimum of 2-3 weeks.

CBs Gerrick McPhearson (ankle) and Kevin Dockery (hamstring) didn't practice. Neither did LB Kawika Mitchell (groin), CB Sam Madison (hamstring), S Will Demps (elbow), DE Adrian Awasom (abductor), LB Gerris Wilkinson (knee), OL Grey Ruegamer (ankle) or OL Adam Koets (undisclosed).

The Giants did cut down to 76 players, one above the max allowed by 4 p.m. tomorrow. TE Rodney Burgess (shoulder) was waived-injured, DT Marcus Bell (knee) became the sixth Giant to go on injured reserve, and the following were waived: WR Wil Buchanon, DB Richard Yancy, LB Karibi Dede, OL Nick Jones and OL Myniya Smith.

Just so you know the available CBs today were the starting twosome of R.W. McQuarters and Corey Webster, nickel CB Aaron Ross... And then Darren Barnett and J.R. Reed, who's a safety.

I expect the starters to stand on the field for the anthem on Thursday and then sit inside for their own well-being.

Broken jaw for Underwood. Happened on the safety, apparently, though no one really saw it.

Safe to say his season is over, yet again, in the third preseason game. Tough break for a kid who had a chance again to make the roster and contribute.

"You explain it, I certainly can't," TC said. "We really wanted to take a long, hard look at him last night. Then, before you know it, he's gone."

So to answer the comment from the other day -- they won't keep both Underwood and Dockery. Dockery's going to stick, but he had another rough game last night. Depth is really a huge concern at the corner now, if it weren't already.

LB Kawika Mitchell has a strained groin and it sounds as if he's day to day. Wouldn't think of him playing on Thursday, but he could be ready for 9/9 in Dallas.

TC said the Giants won't be starting from scratch with the kicking game. Lawrence Tynes missed two, though one was off a bad snap; Josh Huston then could have sewn up his lead for the job but missed his 42-yarder late. Huston boomed a kickoff out of the end zone, into the wind, so it's safe to say he still leads.

Kudos from TC to Justin Tuck, Osi and the rest of the D-line. Great game for the starting group. Maybe, instead of "Ballin'," the new slogan will be "Michael who?"

Anthony Wright and Tim Hasselbeck... were not good last night. Again. Good question from John Branch of the Fancy-Pants Gazette (Times to the rest of you) about whether the Giants would join the trend and carry only two QBs.

TC wouldn't say, but it's not a bad thought. Neither of the vets has looked even remotely decent.

I asked about Reuben Droughns, who has been rather blah as a running back. He does do other things -- he's been the upback on kickoffs, with good results -- so I don't think he's in any danger of being gassed. But Ahmad Bradshaw, Derrick Ward and Ryan Grant have all out-performed Droughns in the running game.

That's all for now... We'll see if Ol' 92 checks in tomorrow.

Which means lots of burn for Steve Smith, Sinorice Moss, Anthony Mix and Kevin Boss.

Also out: Derrick Ward, Jeff Feagles (who was on the field and walking around before the game), Marcus Bell, Adrian Awasom, Will Demps, Todd Londot, Ryan Kuehl, Sam Madison, Gerris Wilkinson and Grey Ruegamer.

Bell suffered the injury in the Wednesday night practice. So much for his needing a big night.

And Burress is listed as out with the flu, not any ankle woes. Still, as MG just pointed out, he's not played a preseason game yet and next week's preseason finale will be about 10 minutes' worth of work for the 1s.

Giants-Jets usually has some meaning despite the fact that it's a preseason game. Tomorrow's game has far less meaning because the teams play each other this season, so no one's giving anything away.

Some quick hits and what-to-look-for items:

IN NEED OF A GOOD SHOWING

DT Marcus Bell -- Remember when he might have started? He was running with the third unit this week.

RB Reuben Droughns -- Derrick Ward's sprained ankle should give the veteran a chance to show some more, but Ward and even Ryan Grant have outplayed Droughns thus far.

CB E.J. Underwood -- Hasn't hurt himself with his play of late, but has been hurt more by some improved play from Kevin Dockery.

K Lawrence Tynes -- Josh Huston's 50-yarder in Baltimore gave the rookie the edge, so Tynes needs an opportunity to make something and kick off deep to prove he should be the kicker.

QB Tim Hasselbeck -- Needs to have the greatest game ever to even be considered for the third QB spot.

OL Adam Koets/Guy Whimper -- If neither shows improvement, everyone better pray that David Diehl stays as healthy as he always has.

With names in the title:

10. Liza Radley, The Jam
9. Maggie May, Rod Stewart
8. Gloria, Them
7. Janie Jones, The Clash
6. 867-5309/Jenny, Tommy Tutone
5. Suzanne, Weezer
4. Allison, Elvis Costello
3. Sheena Is A Punk Rocker, The Ramones
2. Rosalita, Springsteen
1. Josie, Blink-182

Nothing like a good list to kick off a Friday. As always, I welcome your comments/suggestions.

Giants waived WR Marco Thomas and LB Barry Robertson and placed S Michael Stone (hip) on injured reserve. They also signed rookie FA LB Karibi Dede.

Stone was likely to grab a roster spot, so that opens the door for either rookie Michael Johnson or recently signed J.R. Reed to fit in. With Will Demps out for a couple more weeks, one of those guys could play a bit too. Craig Dahl is still around, but I can't see him making a bigger impact than the other two.

Last practice wasn't such a light workout after all -- TC made sure his guys were focused. Eli Manning delivered a perfect, 45-yard strike to Amani Toomer, who made the catch between Corey Webster and Gibril Wilson. Toomer's ankle turned out to be OK.

TE Michael Matthews is still taking the brunt of TC's barbs. During a no-huddle drill, Matthews was jogging back from a play while Kevin Boss was hustling on and calling Matthews off; Matthews decided to run off to the wrong sideline, and TC lit into him. Matthews also had two drops. That third TE spot might be a late addition from someone else's cuts.

Ahmad Bradshaw had the catch of the day, a leaping, one-handed grab with James Butler face-guarding him on a 3rd-and-goal timing throw from Jared Lorenzen at the 3.

And that's all, folks... A person close to Strahan said he's not coming back Saturday to make an appearance at the Jets game. We'll see about next week.

So says my man Blauber, aka Clip-On... Here's the link to his blog:

Nice job, Clip-On

Confirms what many of us around the team have been hearing for a week or so -- that Strahan will be back, he'll get some work in and the Giants won't bang him for the whole $400K in fines.

We'll see what goes down from here.

First, a quick injury rundown, since there are some additions:

WR Amani Toomer twisted his ankle this morning and sat out the evening practice. No word on his status yet, but he looked unhappy leaving the field.

QB Jared Lorenzen (concussion) and RB Derrick Ward (ankle), who were both hurt in Sunday's game but practiced yesterday, sat tonight.

P Jeff Feagles' back tightened up and he wasn't out there tonight either.

Jeremy Shockey (hamstring) dressed and did some individual work but no team drills.

As for those team drills, a couple brief highlights:

Eli Manning delivered a perfect, 45-yard strike to Steve Smith in 7-on-7s... TC gave it to TE Michael Matthews for missing blocks on consecutive Reuben Droughns runs, then Matthews dropped an easy catch. Oops... Kevin Boss made a couple more nice catches... Plaxico Burress had two good grabs and looked sharp... Josh Huston and Lawrence Tynes each hit from 35 and 40 yards.

One workout left up here in Albany, and it won't be a serious one tomorrow.

Strangely, this Eli-Tiki thing has legs... Go figure.

Tiki, last night on his Sirius radio show, said this:

"I tell things how I see them. And, point in fact, Dick Ebersol at NBC Sports hired me to be honest and fair and opinionated and that’s all I’m going to be."

And this:

“He also said that I didn’t have any heart and he could see it on the field. I guess I really would have been a Hall of Famer if I had played with heart instead of rushing for 1650 yards with no heart. Who knows?”

And this:

"And another thing that I think every Giants fan knows and why, in some ways, some things ring hollow that Eli said, is I have never, ever, ever not left 100% of myself on the football field. And you can say whatever you want but don’t say that because that’s offensive.”

Eli, of course, was asked to respond to the response to his response. And he said:

"What I said…this is kind of a done issue for me. I made some comments (on Wednesday) and now it’s over in my eyes. I don’t want to make it into a bigger deal, so I’ll try to end it as soon as possible."

And:

"I was just responding to what someone said and that’s it."

And about Tiki getting upset that Eli said Tiki had no heart? "What I read in some articles, that his heart wasn’t in it."

And:

"Well, I guess I’ve always been even-keeled, never really responded back, tried to always make things smooth and easy. And that’s probably the first time I’ve kind of fired back a little bit. It’s one of those things I felt the need to do. It just came out. I don’t know. It was just one of those deals where it seemed like the right thing to do.

"I’m fine talking with Tiki. If I see him, I’ll definitely talk to him, I’ll be friendly to him. I’m not trying to start something. That’s just the deal. It happened. Hopefully, when we see each other – and I’m sure we will – it won’t be awkward because I don’t want it to be."

And perhaps, that will be the end of this so-called spat... Unless Tiki has a blog update or does a podcast or has yet another outlet in his media empire to prolong this thing. Beware overexposure, Tiki -- it's the fastest way a media person such as yourself becomes irritating to the masses.

So, I think we're done here. There was a jog-through this morning, so tonight's practice will be the last full-speed one in Albany. I'll have more after that.

On the injury front, TC said Sinorice Moss (ankle) would be back tomorrow and Jeremy Shockey (hamstring) is still sore. Doubt either one will play on Saturday.

Almost forgot the Giants' roster shuffle today:

They waived-injured Mike Jennings and DT Charrod Taylor (foot), and waived OL Dan Parrish.

They signed CB/KR J.R. Reed and C Nick Jones and claimed WR Will Buchanon off waivers from the Raiders.

That is all.

A person who knows what the Giants' front office is thinking said after practice what I blogged earlier -- zero interest in Jeremiah Trotter, zero interest in Lemar Marshall. They're committed to being young and staying young.

OK, practice:

Plaxico Burress (ankle) returned to practice after missing 19 days; Zak DeOssie (ankle) also practiced as the SLB with the second unit and Reggie Torbor switched over to WLB. Steve Smith (concussion) went through the full practice after getting cleared this morning.

Out were Jeremy Shockey (hamstring), Sinorice Moss (ankle), Sam Madison (hamstring), Will Demps (elbow), Grey Ruegamer and Jonas Seawright (concussion).

Giants did a lot of scout-team work in preparation for the Jets just four days away. Best moments were a couple of catches by Kevin Boss -- one from Jared Lorenzen that went off David Tyree's hands and into Boss' behind the defense, the other a seam throw from Eli Manning for a 16-yard TD.

Corey Webster took Madison's first-team CB reps. Matt Lentz was the second-unit center in place of Ruegamer and Adam Koets took some snaps at LG. He was as shaky as he'd been at LT with the third group.

Tyree had a tough day, not getting high enough for a curl route from Anthony Wright and letting Kevin Dockery blow by him for a tackle in the backfield.

And TC offered up some praise for Eli's shots at Tiki. "He decided to say what he felt," TC said. "More power to him."

There's zero chance of the Giants adding him now, unless something's wrong with Antonio Pierce and we don't know about it. Trotter is 30, he could be expensive and, perhaps most important, he and Pierce don't exactly love one another from their Redskins days.

The Giants are pretty well set at LB for now, I'd say. Maybe if Ol' 92 were really going to retire that would change, but even then, Lemar Marshall, who was just gassed by the Skins, might be a better choice, just because Marshall has played outside.

I'm usually way off on these astute observations, so we'll see what someone in charge has to say later.

No, really.

So here's the scene: Tiki Barber, on the NBC Sunday football telecast of Ravens-Giants, about Eli's leadership skills:

"He hasn’t shown it. His personality hasn’t been so that he can step up, make a strong statement and have people believe that it’s coming from his heart... Last year about Week 12 I turned over the offensive motivational speech to Eli and he was gung-ho to do it, but he was uncomfortable doing it. I think a lot of it had to do with vets being around -- myself, Jeremy Shockey, Plaxico Burress. He didn’t feel like his voice was going to be strong enough and it showed. Sometimes it was almost comical the way that he would say things."

And then this, when asked whether it was good for Eli that Barber retired:

"I think it is a good thing for Eli, to tell you the truth. Quite honestly."

So today, Eli fired back. No, really.

"I guess I was just happy for Tiki that he made a smooth transition into the media world. It will be interesting to see if he has anything else to say besides the Giants and what his comments will be on that. It’s one of those deals – I’m not going to lose any sleep over what Tiki has to say. I guess I could have questioned his leadership skills last year, calling out the coach and having articles about him retiring in the middle of the season saying he lost the heart. As a quarterback you’re reading your running back has lost the heart to play the game and it’s about the 10th week, I can see that a little bit at times. I’m not going to get concerned and I’m going to go out and play ball."

"It’s one of those deals. When a guy goes to the media he has to say stuff. He’s put in a situation where he’s got to talk. That’s just the way it is. That’s the world we live in and you have to deal with it."

I guess this means that now, when Eli starts waving his arms to pump up the crowd and gives pre-game pep talks that resemble the St. Crispian's Day speech by Henry V, Tiki can take credit for making Eli a man.

I've written in this space before about Tiki's "but enough about me" routine, and he's certainly entitled to say whatever he likes now since he's one of us. Perhaps this will be the end to it... Though someone just remarked that Tiki's Sirius show is on tonight.

Lord help us.

Practice update on the way later.

Here's a quick rundown on the carnage from Sunday night, via TC just a few minutes ago on conference call:

-- Grey Ruegamer has a high ankle sprain, no mention of a concussion. He's out at least until the opener. I'd guess that Rich Seubert would be the backup center now, not Matt Lentz, who's struggled mightily.

-- Will Demps' dislocated elbow still has the three-week prognosis, even though Demps seems to feel he'll be back quicker. I'm guessing if he's dislocated the elbow twice, they'll make sure it's stable before he's back. Don't bet on seeing him in Dallas.

-- Steve Smith (concussion) is better. Jonas Seawright also had a concussion. Neither will practice for a couple days, at least.

-- Jeremy Shockey had some tightness in his hamstring, and he'll be limited in practice. Frankly, if he doesn't play either remaining preseason game, is anyone going to be worried? The guy comes to play.

-- Sam Madison's hammy is in worse shape than Shockey's, but TC had no new info. Only the guess that a guy with bad hamstrings should miss more than just a few days. Like Demps, don't bet on seeing Madison in Dallas.

-- Lastly, TC sounded very down today, and I suspect it had a lot to do with Mike Jennings' ruptured Achilles. Jennings had surgery today. TC never used to bite the previous two camps when asked about Jennings, always giving a gruff answer to questions about a guy with such a big, friendly personality.

Ultimately, though, TC is a coach, and it'd be hard to imagine that he's seen more improvement from anyone in two years than he saw from Jennings... The guy showed up in '05 with a funny car, a funny attitude and little else. He won a spot last year with a punt return for a TD, but he didn't stop working; this time around, with even less of a chance to make a team loaded with young WR talent, he was going to do it again, thanks in large part to the game he was having last night.

Mike Jennings will be almost 29 when his Achilles is fully healed next year, and the Giants will probably have even more WR talent. If TC is the coach, bet on Jennings finding his way to camp; if not, don't bet against him getting a job somewhere, or that TC will be MJ's biggest cheerleader.

Besides this blog, of course. It's easy to root for people like Mike.

Just for good measure. Unreal.

Which is just awful, considering the guy was playing well. He made a terrific catch along the sideline and stumbled out of bounds, then looked back to see what happened to his left foot since no one touched him. He was going to make the team for sure and now he's done for the year.

Will Demps also has a dislocated right elbow after trying to tackle Musa Smith and that could be very serious as well.

And, on the same play but well away from any contact, Sam Madison came up clutching his left hamstring.

Ugly half.

Here's a story I just filed:

Baltimore – Michael Strahan will likely inform the Giants this week that he’s returning to play this season and could re-join the team by as early as Saturday, when the Giants play the Jets in a preseason game at Giants Stadium, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
The person, who requested anonymity, said that Tony Agnone, Strahan’s Baltimore-based agent, met with Giants general manager Jerry Reese yesterday and indications were that Strahan, who has missed all 24 days of training camp and accrued fines totaling $342,912 to date, would be ready to end his holdout and thoughts of retirement and join the team for the final two weeks of the preseason.
Reese declined to comment last night. Agnone, who attended last night’s game, said that Strahan still had no timetable to make his decision, nor had he made one yet. “It could be this week, it could be next week, it could be the week after,” Agnone said.
Agnone did say that Strahan – whose family is urging him to retire, according to an NBC report last night – knows he needs to inform the Giants sooner rather than later about his plans, particularly if Strahan decides to play. “He does want to get his work in and be ready for the season, if that’s what he chooses to do,” Agnone said.
Strahan has been working out on his own in Southern California since July 27, when he was supposed to report to Albany for camp.
The person with knowledge of the situation said the Giants were not likely to force Strahan, who is due to earn $4-million this season, to pay the entire amount of the fines, which would reach $400,064 by Thursday. “They’re not looking to embarrass him,” the person said. “He’s meant too much to the organization”
Reese said on Thursday that if Strahan were to return to play, he needed to get back on the field and start learning a new defense.
“You just can’t show up and play in the National Football League,” Reese said. “If he decides to come I think he will be here soon, but it’s still his decision and we’ll see what happens in the next few days.”

Ah, the drama...

Here we are in M&T Bank Stadium... Right now, I'm watching Amani Toomer stretch and jog around the field. Suppose that's a good sign.

My thanks to Alan Hahn for giving me a couple days of rest this week. He didn't want to touch the blog though, and honestly, who can blame him? This is an important page.

OK, here's my list of five positions to watch tonight:

DT -- And not just to see Manny Wright and Tui... Oh, heck, if TC won't bother, I won't either. But those two guys won't play much; this is more about what Fred Robbins/Barry Cofield/Jay Alford/Marcus Bell/Jonas Seawright can do against Willis McGahee and Mike Anderson.

DE -- Justin Tuck will run with the first team on the left side and it'll be interesting to see how he fares. Osi Umenyiora will go up against rookie Jared Gaither, whom the Ravens took in the fifth round of the supplemental draft and has been elevated to starter with Jonathan Ogden out. A few commenters here wanted the Giants to take Gaither, the 6-8, 350-pound monster. We'll see how he handles Osi.

WR -- Toomer is hardly a concern. The guy is a pro's pro and he'll be fine. Mike Jennings and Anthony Mix will be worth watching -- this is where Jennings made the team last year with his 57-yard punt return for a TD, and Mix has had a good week of camp. No Sinorice Moss and no Plaxico Burress means plenty of time for Steve Smith too, and he should get some work with Eli Manning.

OL -- Bart Scott and Ray Lewis should provide plenty of pressure when Manning's in the game.

K -- It's time for Lawrence Tynes or Josh Huston to impress.

I'll get some inactives shortly.

Two errors in the last post: Manuel Wright was on the field today, wearing No. 77. He didn't do anything except stretch and watch. He's still pretty big too, and TC said Wright needs to shed some pounds still.

Also, Darcy Johnson went on injured reserve. He was not waived. So he's still Giants property. TC said the Giants would stick with the tight ends they have for now.

Missing from the practice field today were WR Plaxico Burress, who tried to go but stopped, quickly; Corey Webster, whose hip acted up (that can't be good) and DT Charrod Taylor, who had a toe problem.

Turning over the keys to Alan Hahn for the next two days, which means you should look to the Knicks blog for any updates... And look for Strahan to show up and make Alan freak out. Back at you with a Saturday game advance.

Seeing that their interior run defense could use some help and not seeing much risk, the Giants signed troubled DT Manuel Wright today.

Wright, 23, left USC early and went to the Dolphins in the 2005 supplemental draft. He had some personal issues and a publicized breakdown into tears on the practice field after a scolding by then Dolphins coach Nick Saban. He left the team in 2006, reportedly due to depression, and didn't play last season. Miami cut him in May, the Bills signed him and cut him a week later after he reported to mini-camp overweight.

He's a longshot for sure, but there's talent there. Assuming he'll be at camp tomorrow.

The Giants also signed two offensive linemen, Dan Parrish and Myniya Smith.

They waived four players: TE Darcy Johnson, DE Dek Bake and CB Travonti Johnson were all waived-injured and OL Chris Patrick was just waived. Patrick signed after the draft and held some promise, but he was constantly on notice from the coaching staff during drills.

More later, after TC speaks.

Sorry for the delay, gang... And I'll gloss over the practice details for a night to answer the comments:

Tim A -- Tynes didn't work either practice today, which has got to be rankling TC and the staff. Josh Huston boomed a couple kickoffs in the evening but Tynes is the veteran, the guy the Giants want to have being consistent and forcing Huston to kick his behind off to beat out. Ain't happening that way, at least not yet.

KC -- Good point, and here's another one from Shaun O'Hara that didn't make my article for tomorrow. O'Hara said it wasn't until his fifth year in the league -- his first with the Giants -- that he felt comfortable enough to be a vocal leader and speak up. And that's just the off-field maturity factor.

I do find it funny that so many people write Eli off after two up-and-down seasons as a starter... Heck, if people were basing their opinions of my work off of my first two seasons on the Giants beat (and one awful season of blogging), I shudder to think where I'd be now.

Lastly, to the Giants fans who think Eli will magically become his brother: Forget it. He's such a different personality that it could never happen; if it did, his teammates would see right through such fakery.
John -- Can't see the Giants pursuing Warren, who had one good season and a few mediocre ones. The biggest problem with the interior defense from Saturday was not having Fred Robbins there; I even think William Joseph will be able to help inside when he moves back there, which has happened already in practice.

rnargi -- Is this the rnargi from BBI and Sirius NFL call-in fame? I'm honored by your presence here on the blog!

About Will Demps -- He'd never really admit it, but I can only guess he was nowhere near 100 percent last season. The open-field tackles he missed, particularly against the Bears, were a real shock, I'd say. But I agree, he came on at the end of last season, even if some of his pass coverage was weak -- whose wasn't, though? If he's as healthy as he says, he'll be back in the starting lineup.

Plaxico Burress looked strong in his running drills, but they were under the watchful eye of a trainer, not WRs coach Mike Sullivan. Plax isn't worried about missing too much time -- I'm betting he also doesn't worry about Al-qaeda, global warming or whether Lindsay Lohan will ever be a viable Hollywood star again -- but TC is, now that we're at 12 days and counting.

Also out for the morning: TE Kevin Boss (shoulder), WR Marco Thomas (groin), K Lawrence Tynes (calf), LB Gerris Wilkinson (knee), CB Travonti Johnson (quad), LB Barry Robertson (don't know) and DEs Osi Umyniora and Justin Tuck, who will both work this evening.

And yes, yes -- E.J. Underwood was back yesterday. My apologies.

As for practice this morning, lots of missed connections deep by all three QBs. Eli attributed his misfires to a well-rested arm. "Their legs are tired and my arm's fresh. Not the greatest combination," he joked.

Jared Lorenzen hurt his knee, not his ankle, in yesterday's collision with Kevin Dockery, and he almost added an arm injury today when Tommy Davis bull-rushed Guy Whimper straight into Lorenzen's throwing motion. Whimper was not good again today, and neither was Adam Koets, who went missing on a special teams drill and got bawled out by TC.

Best catches of the session went to Anthony Mix, who dove to snatch a ball from the middle of three defenders -- if only the 6-4 Mix could do that more consistently -- and Mike Jennings, who got Corey Webster coming in and caught a nicely floated throw by Eli with room to scamper 20 yards for the score in a two-minute drill.

On D, Will Demps earned more snaps with the 1s, at FS and SS, spelling Gibril Wilson and James Butler on occasion. Webster worked both corners with the 1s as well. Marcus Bell, who did not have a good game on Saturday as a starter, dropped to the 3s, with Jay Alford taking DT snaps alongside Jonas Seawright. TC mentioned again how poor the interior run defense was, and Barry Cofield and Bell were the starters there.

Best overhead coaching moment: Assistant O-line coach Dave DeGuglielmo, a fellow Boston U. alum, to an unnamed lineman during a footwork drill: "Finish with a burst! Don't go ruining my drill with that stuff!" With the Boston accent it sounds bettah. Trust me.

Back with more from the evening.

After a morning spent on corrections during a walk-through, the Giants did show some intensity in their only practice yesterday -- as TC noted, sometimes a little too much intensity, especially when Kevin Dockery landed a hit on Jared Lorenzen and sent the QB down with a tweaked ankle.

Lorenzen limped off as TC screamed at Dockery, "Stay off the quarterback!" A few other players hit the deck. Most surprising: Osi Umenyiora, who got some catcalls from his teammates when Brandon Jacobs ran him over. Least surprising: Matt Lentz, who also delivered his 75th mistimed snap of training camp.

One lineup change: Justin Tuck showed enough health on Saturday to gain the LDE spot with the 1s. William Joseph, who was not so good on Saturday, worked inside with the 1s and 2s.

Eli Manning was very sharp today, throwing a perfectly timed ball to Amani Toomer into single coverage against R.W. McQuarters. Michael Jennings had a nice diving catch coming back to the ball, though he also had a drop. Manning's best pass was a seam completion to Jeremy Shockey for a touchdown.

Aaron Ross returned to action and had a nice pass breakup.

Out of action: TE Kevin Boss (shoulder), WR Marco Thomas (groin), WR Plaxico Burress (ankle), CB E.J. Underwood (hip), S Michael Stone (hip) and K Lawrence Tynes, who apparently strained the calf in his plant leg on one of the extra points on Saturday.

Back with a double shot tomorrow.

Here's Stephen The Intern's views from Saturday:

Battle For Backup QB?

When Anthony Wright was signed in April, a lot of people expected the 9-year veteran to be the backup quarterback, pushing the inexperienced Jared Lorenzen to third string and Tim Hasselbeck off the depth chart. But that might not be the case.

"It’s still a competition, as far as I know – but I don’t really know," said a morose-sounding Wright. "The way this game was played, I don’t understand the situation."

It was Lorenzen who replaced Eli Manning on the Giants’ fourth possession and ran the second-team offense.

After starting off 1-for-4, Lorenzen heated up and orchestrated two scoring drives, including a 71-yard march that resulted in a 10-yard touchdown to Anthony Mix. J-Lithe even broke off a 14-yard run.

In the season finale against the Redskins last year, Kevin Gilbride called on him to convert a 3rd & 1 and Lorenzen, in J-Load mode, plunged forward for two yards.

Lorenzen has yet to attempt a pass in a regular season game, and he still has problems with accuracy, but his raw talent could make him a weapon. Barring injury, he won’t see the field much, but who knows, maybe the Giants will design a couple packages for him like the Gators did for Tim Tebow last year.

As for Wright, he got sacked on his first drop-back and finished the game 5-for-11 with 49 yards.

"It’s kind of hard to assess [my performance] right now," said Wright, who had shown good accuracy in mini-camp. "Things didn’t go exactly the way we had hoped for them to be."

What’s up Dock?

Understatement of the Year: Kevin Dockery didn’t play well last night.

The second-year corner was burned more times than a CD-RW, and worse than a toasted sandwich at Subway.

First he committed a pass interference on Taye Biddle that gave the Panthers 28 yards, and the next ball thrown his way was a 17-yard completion to Ryne Robinson on a post route. And the next one was an 11-yard completion to Chris Horn. And the next one was a 13-yard completion to Horn. And the coup de grâce – a blown assignment that led to Biddle’s 85-yard touchdown in the third quarter.

The bright side for Dockery is that he had two interceptions and seven pass deflections last season, so that gives him a little equity.

Guy Whimper

The good: He made the key block to spring Reuben Droughns for 32 yards on a screen that setup the Derrick Ward touchdown. He also didn’t allow a sack.

The Bad: He had difficulty handling the speed rush. Whimper was susceptible to the jab step and quick rip move inside, which caused a few pressures on Lorenzen. He also committed a false start that put the Giants in a 3rd & 13 hole.

Whimper wasn’t impressive, but he has progressed from last year when he played in the fourth quarters of the pre-season games and looked inept at right tackle (read: he got whipped by scrubs). A converted tight end and DE (you can never have enough pass rushers), he didn’t get much experience at left tackle in college, but the Giants liked his athleticism and view him as a long-term project. So, baby steps.

"He did OK," said GM Jerry Reese, who scouted Whimper and was high on him last year. "I won’t say he played great, but as far as I can tell, he played OK. I’ll have to watch the tape."

Shoot the J…Shoot it!

Justin Tuck, who missed most of ‘06 season with a Lisfranc injury, said that if he had been playing, not only would he have partaken in the "Ballin’!" sack celebration, but he’d have outshined the others with his jump-shot.

"I have great form on the jumper with a quick release and everything," said Tuck, who averaged 17.6 points and 11.3 rebounds at Central Coosa County High School in Alabama. "It’s better than William Joseph’s, I can tell you that."

He also said that the defense is working on a new sack dance for this year but it won’t be revealed until the regular season.

I get the feeling that when it’s debuted, it’ll come as a surprise to Tom Coughlin as well.

Tickets sold vs. actual attendance
The Giants announced that 75,535 tickets were sold for the pre-season opener. That’s a misleading number. The stadium looked like it was about at about half capacity. Click here if you’d like to see for yourself.

But at least the disparity between the number of tickets sold and tickets used wasn’t as bad as the Jets’ opener on Friday, where the number of people in attendance might’ve been 1/8th that of the 75,767 who bought tickets.

The crowd was boisterous, too. Even from the press box you could hear the cacophony of boos and groans each time Dockery was fricasseed.

We'll be back with a practice update in a few.

Really.

Miscommunication on Saturday night between myself and Stephen The Intern (STI, in case you catch him blogging later on)... Thought he was going to post some of his observations from Saturday, but it didn't happen.

So here we go, with a quick recap of the last two days... Since none of you saw fit to talk about the game I know you all ('cept you, Mookie) watched, I'll get it started before we get back to practice today:

-- Best player on the field was Will Demps. Threw the key block that sprung Derrick Ward for his 67-yard kickoff return, had a sack and a tackle for loss and was generally in the right place at the right time. Guess he's serious about winning that starting safety job back.

-- Other guys who flashed on D: Zak DeOssie, who also was the first guy downfield after long-snapping on punt coverage; Osi Umenyiora, who will be in fine form when Strahan comes back; Justin Tuck, who must've made TC smile with that down-the-line sprint to catch up to a Panthers RB and and Corey Webster, who did bite on the play-action to leave Taye Biddle open for the late TD in the first half but was otherwise good in coverage. I think the safety on that side (Craig Dahl, most likely) missed his read too.

-- Those that did the opposite of flash (or flash in a bad way) on D: Dahl, who threw a late hit to keep that second-quarter TD drive alive, then got caught in no man's land on Biddle's 85-yard TD reception; Kevin Dockery, who got beat by Biddle there and had a pass interference flag; William Joseph, playing like the Willie Joe we all know; Mathias Kiwanuka, who needs more time at LB.

-- On O, I'd give game balls to every RB, even Ahmad Bradshaw, who showed some terrific moves on runs and receptions despite the late fumble; Rich Seubert, who clogged the middle well; and Jared Lorenzen, who had a rough start but recovered nicely.

OK, off to catch up with the gang. And my 5 p.m. update will be here on time, with lots of wise remarks awaiting, I'm sure.

Seriously, you guys are the best. The responses to the theme music post were better than mine -- here's a couple more:

Rich Seubert -- the theme from Deliverance

William Joseph -- The Sounds of Silence, Simon & Garfunkel

Later.

WR Plaxico Burress, WR Amani Toomer, S Michael Stone, CB Aaron Ross, CB E.J. Underwood, CB Travonti Johnson, LB Gerris Wilkinson, OL Todd Londot, LS Ryan Kuehl and DT Fred Robbins for the Giants. They're all currently or had been slowed by injuries.

Notable for the Panthers: LB Dan Morgan, LB Na'il Diggs and rookie WR Dwayne Jarrett.

Gotta scribble for the paper at halftime, so I'll try to have a second-half recap late tonight. If you care.

OK, so there are plenty of things to ponder on the drive down from Albany after two weeks away from home... Did someone stop by to feed the goldfish? Did I leave any soft cheese in the fridge?

But strangely, all I thought about was the title question. Mike Jennings has already announced what his theme song is -- It Takes Two, by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock, in case you forgot -- so on this rainy Friday morning, before I undertake the preview of tomorrow night's Giants-Panthers game, we'll have a little fun imagining what tunes some of the Giants would take the field to. My thanks to Neil Best and his WatchDog Blog for inspiring me to be a little creative today:

Osi Umenyiora -- I Ain't No Joke, Eric B. & Rakim. Might be a little old school for Osi, but no doubt he wants to let everyone know this sentiment.

Jeremy Shockey -- Skynyrd. Definitely.

Plaxico Burress -- There was a yoga chant I accidentally heard once that was just someone going "ommmmmm" for about 15 minutes. That sounds about right for the most laid-back guy on the team.

Eli Manning -- Definitely the toughest one to come up with. James Taylor? The Carpenters? I think it'd be Kenny Chesney. Maybe Beer In Mexico, something upbeat. I don't know.

Amani Toomer -- Grateful Dead, Zappa, something out there.

Antonio Pierce -- California Love, 2Pac. Either that, or Mozart. Not really sure if he needs to be pumped up for a game or bring it down a notch.

Gibril Wilson -- Rock Star, N*E*R*D. I always liked this track for a baseball closer, but it works for a safety too.

TC -- A few of us wags were clowning around on the sideline the other day, wondering what the coach listens to. Being the most juvenile wiseguy, I suggested perhaps The Kingston Trio, one of the squarest 60s groups; but since the coach is making an effort to loosen up this year, I'll go in a different direction. Enjoy.

I'll be back in a bit with a game preview.

That means there was little 11-on-11 full-speed work... What little there was left TC complimenting the defense and criticizing the offense for some lackluster effort. Guess what I've been seeing on the sideline is what the coach has been seeing on the field.

The practice was mostly one unit working on its schemes and a scout team working off play cards, simulating the Panthers' schemes. Gibril Wilson had a nice, leaping INT over Brandon London, and James Butler had a pick and a nice tackle for loss.

Interesting note: Guy Whimper worked in some with the 1s as well as the 2s and will seemingly get plenty of playing time. He looked very hit or miss, as usual, and mostly miss. Long way to go there.

Everyone who has missed time with an injury won't play on Saturday: WRs Plaxico Burress (ankle) and Amani Toomer (knee), CBs Aaron Ross (glute/hammy) and E.J. Underwood (hip), S Michael Stone (hip) and DT Fred Robbins (calf).

Jeremy Shockey, Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora will play, though sparingly.

Eli Manning will start Saturday, followed by Jared Lorenzen and then Anthony Wright. Tim Hasselbeck will likely play against the Ravens on the 19th.

The punt-return rotation will start with either Michael Jennings or Sinorice Moss and may include R.W. McQuarters, but Jennings and Moss will get the first looks.

I'll check in with a game preview blog tomorrow and answer the comments in fuller detail with a day off from practice.

Bad night for Eli Manning and his accuracy, which had been excellent thus far. He threw two interceptions, one a badly underthrown deep ball for Mike Jennings that Corey Webster picked, the other a throw for TE Rodney Burgess at the goal line that was well behind the target and right into Gibril Wilson's hands.

Anthony Wright also had an INT when his deep throw into double coverage bounced off WR Kevin McMahan's hands and into Richard Yancy's.

More observations:

-- William Joseph showed a nice burst from the right DT spot, blowing by G Zach Piller for a sack of Wright. Joseph has been solid, and when's the last time you heard that about Silent Willie?

-- Kawika Mitchell always seems to be around the ball against the run. He was waiting for Brandon Jacobs at the line twice, both times unblocked.

-- Jay Alford got his first work with the 1s at DT with Fred Robbins (calf) still out, and he didn't get noticed the right way. Alford jumped offside and stopped playing, leaving Reuben Droughns open for a screen pass and good yardage. TC was not pleased with the rook.

-- Lawrence Tynes hit from 35 and 40 yards, but missed a 40-yarder at the simulated end of the half. Josh Huston missed from 35 and hit from 40.

-- Out were Burress (ankle), E.J. Underwood (hip), Michael Stone (hip), Osi Umenyiora and Aaron Ross (hammy). Jeremy Shockey was in, as was Justin Tuck.

Later.

TC decided to go with a jog-through and had players in shells and shorts. The injuries of the last few practices, plus the addition of some new looks into both the offense and defense prompted TC to go at a slower pace so the younger guys and the injured guys could participate.

It'll be a full-pads practice tonight, so I'll have a real report then.

TC said afterwards that Amani Toomer would not play on Saturday against the Panthers, Plaxico Burress (ankle) is doubtful, Fred Robbins (calf) and Jeremy Shockey (leg) may go and that Justin Tuck will play at least a few snaps.

Just to add to the debate on the comment board, TC did say that Guy Whimper will be getting few, if any, snaps at LT with the 1s. Dave Diehl has earned the right to play there and he needs the work, so Whimper is going to do more work strictly with the 2s.

More later.

First, the medical update:

-- LB Gerris Wilkinson has a subluxed right kneecap, which is as bad as it sounds -- his kneecap dislocated during a pile-up on Monday night. TC guesstimated about three weeks, but I'm betting it'll be at least twice as long. Kawika Mitchell was going to be the starting WLB, but Wilkinson would have gotten some work and plenty of special teams time. Tyson Smith is now the backup WLB, and he should make the opening-day roster now, since he did some teams work last season.

-- OL Todd Londot has a high left-ankle sprain. Don't think we'll hear too much from him again this year.

-- DT Fred Robbins has a calf strain but shouldn't miss too much time. TE Jeremy Shockey (upper leg soreness) sat out practice too, along with CB Aaron Ross (strained glute/hammy), WR Plaxico Burress (sprained right ankle), S Michael Stone (strained quad) and CB E.J. Underwood, whose injury hasn't been disclosed. All of these guys were on the stationary bikes today, so they don't have serious injuries.

On to practice...

-- Started off as a terrific day for the offense. Good pass protection for Eli Manning, crisp throws -- he hit Michael Jennings for a pair of completions that were zipped -- and some running room for Brandon Jacobs and Reuben Droughns.

-- Eli was on fire in 7-on-7 work, as was Amani Toomer. They hooked up on a deep ball over Sam Madison, then again on a curl with Madison holding one of Toomer's arms. Madison was also burned on both completions to Jennings.

-- Best ball of the day from Eli was a three-step drop bullet to Jennings on a third-and-short situation. Jennings had clear sailing after the completion.

-- Tim Hasselbeck got the bulk of the backup snaps and didn't do much with them. He hit Kevin Boss for a completion in 7-on-7s, but Boss had to wrestle the ball away from Kevin Dockery; on the next play, Hasselbeck tried to hit David Tyree, but Dockery easily picked the ball off.

-- Later in team drills, the offensive line's inability to protect the QB left TC shaking his head. Osi Umenyiora had a couple of bull-rushes for presumed sacks, including one on a rip move that was just amazing. David Diehl had seemingly terrific position, had his balance, and Osi just blew through.

-- Guy Whimper struggled again, and Jerry Reese said on WFAN today that the "competition" between Whimper and Diehl is basically over. Adrian Awasom feasted on Whimper late in practice.

-- Jennings, Sinorice Moss, Ahmad Bradshaw and R.W. McQuarters fielded punts early in practice. Ross would be the fifth candidate there.

Two tomorrow. Back at you then.

The Giants went from being relatively healthy to pretty banged up in a manner of minutes. That's the amount of time it took for two players, LB Gerris Wilkinson and OL Todd Londot, to go down and be carted off the field tonight.

Both were hurt in the 9-on-7 drill, where there's plenty of contact. Wilkinson hurt his right knee, Londot his left ankle. Plus, in the following team drill, Gibril Wilson sat out with back spasms. Will Demps took his spot.

Good session for both sides of the ball. There was plenty of spunk on both sides, a fight between reserve OL Ryan Keenan and depth DE Marquise Gunn and one spectacular sideline catch by Steve Smith over Kevin Dockery, who did have an INT in the session.

Smith almost hauled in another eye-popper in the end zone, but Corey Webster neatly poked the ball out of Smith's hands.

Biggest hit of the day came on a goal-line run by Ryan Grant, who ran into a wall of defenders and sounded as if he ran into an actual wall, Wile E. Coyote style. Jonas Seawright and Chase Blackburn led the charge there.

More tomorrow, gang. Oh, and Pete -- Ahmad Bradshaw has not had a single snap with the 1s or 2s. They're working him in slowly. Sinorice Moss has been the go-to third-down guy, whether with some razzle-dazzle or just throws.

Another bad day for the offense. A few blown routes/throws by all four QBs on the wet grass, Eli Manning fumbled a snap and Matt Lentz shotgunned a snap over Jared Lorenzen's head.

Manning threw the ball well again, especially in 7-on-7 drills; he threw it well in the full team drills too, but that was usually after a blitzer had already blown through. Credit sacks to Corey Webster, who will have his first two-practice day today, Antonio Pierce and Kevin Dockery, who returned after missing a week with a concussion.

Dockery got plenty of burn because Aaron Ross sat out this morning with a strained glute/hamstring suffered on Saturday evening. Ross said he'd be back in a day or two. Dockery had a few nice plays in coverage but also a couple slip-ups, including one literal slip-up at the goal line that left Steve Smith open for a TD catch from Lorenzen.

Manning's best ball of the day was a play-action strike to Jeremy Shockey, sliding over the middle for a TD between Pierce and James Butler. He also threw a pretty nice deep ball to Amani Toomer, but R.W. McQuarters made a terrific play to tip the ball away.

Guy Whimper also got owned by Tommy Davis on consecutive pass plays late in practice. Whimper took zero snaps with the first unit, which was certainly by design, but I'm guessing that Dave Diehl won't be shifting around as much as the first preseason game approaches.

I'll have more tonight.

Here's the full text of Strahan's statement, sent out by his agent, Tony Agnone:

To the New York Giants’ Fans:

As many of you know, I am contemplating one of the biggest decisions of my football career, whether I should retire or continue playing. Like all athletes, I knew this day would come when I would have to stand before that proverbial fork in the road. But I must admit that it’s not until you’re actually staring at the two diverging paths do you really grasp how impactful and painful this decision can be. I was hoping to make this personal decision quietly and without much hoopla, but given the recent torrent of erroneous media reports and totally inaccurate assumptions, I feel that I have to come forward and publicly set the record straight with those for whom I have toiled the last fourteen years—you fans.

This off season has been one of the best in my professional career. I have worked extremely hard to make sure that I’m in shape and ready to tackle the rigors of another physical season. I am proud to say that at my body feels years younger and ready to compete at the highest level. I love training and preparation, and this off season has made it clear to me that this is one aspect of the game that I will miss tremendously when I decide to one day unstrap the helmet for the last time. I went into this off season with every intention of entering a 15th season with the Giants, the only team I’ve ever played for during my career. But I am human, and despite the images of me grimacing and tackling opposing quarterbacks and running backs, I have to face my mortality like anyone else. When an athlete like myself who does what I do for a living starts having doubts, then it’s time to take a step back and seriously consider my future. Anyone who plays in the NFL with doubts or second guessing is not only putting themselves at risk, but their teammates also. I will never do that.

What 's been most disappointing has been all of this nonsense that I'm holding out for more money. The truth is that football has been very good to me and I have been fortunate enough to be surrounded by advisors who have ensured that my family and I will live comfortably for the rest of my life.You deserve to know what's really going on. My agent met with the Giants earlier in the year and discussed many things including my contract. Money is not the reason that I have not reported to training camp and it will not be a factor for my return. This has already been communicated to the Giants and while the reports may indicate a"hard line" taken by the team regarding money, it is not necessary, as this issue had been decided well before July.

Despite what some might believe there are those of us who make decisions that have nothing to do with money. Many athletes ask themselves daily if they are emotionally and psychologically at the level where they can compete at the highest level for twenty-four weeks. For them also it isn't about the money, rather a serious athlete asking serious questions about his future. All that I ask, after fourteen seasons,is that you afford me the patience so that I might arrive at my decision on my own terms.

As GM Jerry Reese has said, the Giants are not going to hold a spot for me. I completely understand his stance as football is a business and he must do what is in the best interest of the team. I know that I am only one player. I want to express my thanks to the owners and coaches for their extremely kind words about my career as a Giant to date. I have been proud to wear the Giant uniform thoughout my professional career.You have my word that I will try to make the correct decision as quickly as possible. If I decide to play, I hope that you will continue to cheer me on like you have for all of these years. If I decide to hang up the cleats, then I will bid you all a tremendous thank you for the privilege to play a game that has blessed me in so many ways and created memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. I humbly thank you for your understanding and being the best fans in the world.

Michael Strahan
#92

So there you have it... Nice to see Michael trotting out the thesaurus and dropping in some 50-cent words.

Other than that, we're still waiting. Back to practices tomorrow.

A fairly nondescript practice. Only moment of concern was Aaron Ross, who had a couple good PDs early, hobbling off with a right hamstring tweak. He stayed out on the field with ice on the leg.

Michael Jennings gave a few back that he caught in the morning, including one throw from Eli Manning that Jennings, reaching behind him, tipped into Sam Madison's hands for a pick-six.

Brandon London dropped one this morning and he hasn't been as solid as I thought he would. Neither he nor Anthony Mix has impressed yet.

Corey Webster looked strong in man coverage in team drills. He's been running well and sticking close to his man.

The catch of the day was turned in by Harrison Eisen, son of Giants.com scribe Mike Eisen. Harrison went full-extension to catch a Jared Lorenzen pass that sailed 10 yards out of bounds. He's 13, so there's a huge upside there.

And TC generated some goodwill with a fun little contest to close practice. With the day off tomorrow, curfew for the players is 11 p.m. tonight. TC assigned Lawrence Tynes to the offense and Josh Huston to the defense; the kicker who made the longest FG won his side an hour later curfew.

Both kickers, who were surrounded by the players as if they were on a subway platform at rush hour, hit from 30, 35 and 40 yards, with Jeff Feagles holding and rookie Jay Alford snapping.

From 45, Tynes missed wide left. Huston's went up, hit the left upright and bounced out. New life for the O!

Tynes connected from 45 the second time, and Huston's never had a chance, missing wide right.

And with that, we're off until Monday.

Certainly a nicer day than either of the last two sweltering days -- the crowd was by far the largest of camp.

The offense struggled again to contain the blitz, which negated what looked like a nice TD toss from Eli Manning to Darcy Johnson in the corner of the end zone. Mathias Kiwanuka and Antonio Pierce would have had Manning down easily. Guy Whimper was in at LT on that play, and he's still not looking that good with the 1s.

Kevin Gilbride tried to mix in a gadget play that failed miserably. Manning, who did have another good session throwing the ball, faked a handoff to Brandon Jacobs (who ran well again -- looks as if he's got his legs underneath him and he's hitting the holes faster) and pitched it to Sinorice Moss, who was coming on an end around; Moss stopped and looked downfield for either Michael Jennings or Steve Smith, but ended up trying to pass it to Manning in the flat. Fred Robbins picked it cleanly and took it the other way.

TC: "Eli was not the intended receiver on that play."

A good laugh, and an example of why Robbins is so valuable. The guy is huge but has excellent hands, as noted by his two INTs last season.

Jennings, who had struggled the past couple of days, had a terrific morning running with the 1s alongside Moss -- Plaxico Burress (sprained right ankle) and Amani Toomer (one-a-day practices) were out -- and made three tough catches from Manning in good coverage.

Another tough outing for Aaron Ross, who tried to leap and deflect two balls, only to see them land in receivers's hands. One was an Anthony Wright pass for Kevin Boss (the guy does not drop too many), the other was a Jared Lorenzen pass over the middle for David Tyree.

A few kickoff drills were not impressive for either kicker, and while I'm sure no one's worried yet, Lawrence Tynes and Josh Huston are not showing much in drills. We'll see when the games start how worried TC should be.

Back at you after tonight.

In quotes because thunder and lightning (but no rain) drove the team into the UAlbany basketball arena midway through.

The on-field and off-field updates:

-- Plaxico Burress sat out with a sprained right ankle, suffered when he went up high to make a nice catch on Thursday evening. He's out at least a few days. And this is the other ankle, not the surgically repaired one.

-- Chase Blackburn (strained quad) sat out as well, and he won't be back until Monday at the earliest. Same for Kevin Dockery (concussion), but he was much improved and even made it up to the cafeteria for lunch. "Out of the dungeon," he said of his avoiding bright lights the past few days.

-- Brandon Jacobs and Reuben Droughns each had a couple nice runs in the brief team portion of outdoor practice. Lots of room to run for both, and Jacobs showed good acceleration.

-- Amani Toomer caught a deep sideline throw from Eli Manning, and those two are in sync -- Manning's ball was so wobbly and underthrown that Toomer smartly came back on it, leaving R.W. McQuarters hanging.

That's all. I do have to call out OT Jon Dunn for a false start... During the indoor jog-through. Yikes. TC didn't let that one slide. "Let's focus!" he yelled, but not too loudly. The echo inside made it loud enough.

Should be two intense practices tomorrow.

Definitely one of the most educational days of camp. Line judge Jeff Bergman gave the presentation this year. Here are the rule changes for 2007:

-- Spiking the ball in the field of play after anything except a TD will now be a 5-yard penalty.

-- A block below the waist by a defensive player on a receiver while the QB is in the pocket is now a 15-yard personal foul, rather than a 5-yard penalty, and subject to extra discipline.

-- There's no penalty, but officials will be taking note of players who don't fasten their chinstraps to help alleviate head injuries.

-- Defensive holding before the ball is thrown will still be a point of emphasis. The only times it is allowed are when the QB is out of the pocket or when the ball is already in the air to another receiver.

-- Defensive players can deliver light, open-handed shoves to QBs and not be called for roughing the passer. The QBs still get plenty of protection; as illustrated on the NFL's video for rules changes that was shown to us and the players, Mathias Kiwanuka's sack of David Carr in the Giants' 14-10 win is still roughing the passer. I'm sure Mathias will get a big kick out of seeing it on film again.

Bergman, in his 16th year with the league, did answer a question about his and his fellow officials' reaction to the NBA referee's game-fixing scandal. "We were at our clinic in Dallas when the story broke," he said. "It's something that's bad for all professional sports. The NFL has a thorough screening process and they're always trying to see how they can better screen us. (The scrutiny from the NFL) has always been a little bit of a pain in the butt for us, but with the realization that this has actually happened in another league, I think we all understand that the NFL has been ahead of the curve on this."

My own take is that it'd be near impossible for one member of an NFL officiating crew to affect the outcome of a game that way. Too many people would have to be in on it, and even then, it would be hard to see how two or three members of a crew could pull it off.

That's how we spent a few minutes today. Now, it's off to spend a couple hours watching the Giants sweat. Back around 5.

And my thanks to beer girl for noticing that my high school yearbook photo is off the website -- they finally granted my wish to get rid of it.