Dec 312015
 
John Mara, New York Giants (December 20, 2015)

John Mara – © USA TODAY Sports Images

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GIANTS OWNERSHIP DIVIDED ABOUT FATE OF TOM COUGHLIN?…
The New York Daily News is reporting that there have been “several high-level discussions” within the New York Giants’ organization this week about the fate of Head Coach Tom Coughlin. The Daily News says it is not known yet if a final decision has been made, but “there are several people in the Giants’ front office who believe a change is necessary,” including team chairman/executive vice president Steve Tisch. The Daily News reports that pressure is mounting on team president/CEO John Mara to make a change and “most people inside the organization believe Mara will eventually agree.”

“Do I want to come back? I don’t know if that’s a great question right now,” said Coughlin on Thursday. “What I want to do is win a game on Sunday, that’s the bottom line for this group right now. I always have the competitive spirit. Sometimes it takes me a day or two to figure it all out when it’s over. Right now, let’s stick with the game and let’s go win a football game.”

ROSTER MOVES…
The New York Giants have placed linebacker J.T. Thomas (ankle) and long-snapper Danny Aiken (thumb) on season-ending Injured Reserve. Thomas injured his ankle in last Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings, while Aiken injured his thumb in practice on Wednesday.

The Giants now have 20 players on Injured Reserve, one player who spent the season on the Physically-Unable-to-Perform (PUP) List (left tackle Will Beatty) and one player on Injured Reserve/Designated-to-Return (defensive end Owamagbe Odighizuwa).

To fill the roster 53-man roster vacancies, the Giants signed linebacker Nico Johnson from the team’s Practice Squad, and signed long-snapper Tyler Ott.

Johnson was originally drafted in the 4th round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs waived him in August 2014 and signed him to their Practice Squad. The Bengals signed Johnson to their 53-man roster in October 2014, but waived him in August 2015. The Redskins signed Johnson to their Practice Squad in September, but terminated his contract a month later. The Giants signed Johnson to the Practice Squad in November. Johnson has played in 17 regular-season games with three starts, accruing 22 tackles. Johnson is a big linebacker (6’2”, 249lbs) who plays the run well, but isn’t as adept in pass coverage. He is a hard worker.

Ott was originally signed as an undrafted rookie free agent by the New England Patriots after the 2014 NFL Draft. He did not make the team, but spent time with the Patriots again and the St. Louis Rams before the 2015 season.

NEW YORK GIANTS INJURY REPORT…
RT Marshall Newhouse (concussion), DE Jason Pierre-Paul (ankle), LB J.T. Thomas (ankle), S Craig Dahl (concussion), and S Cooper Taylor (concussion) did not practice on Thursday. Thomas was later placed on Injured Reserve.

WR Dwayne Harris (back/shoulder) and LS Danny Aiken (thumb) practiced on a limited basis. Aiken was later placed on Injured Reserve.

HEAD COACH TOM COUGHLIN…
The transcript of Tom Coughlin’s press conference on Thursday is available in The Corner Forum while the video is available at Giants.com.

THE PLAYERS SPEAK…
The following transcripts and video of player media sessions on Thursday are available in The Corner Forum and at Giants.com:

ARTICLES

WHAT’S UP NEXT…
There is no media access to the Giants on New Year’s Day. The team will hold a 45-minute, up-tempo “walk-thru” practice on Saturday that is not open to the media. The Giants play the Philadelphia Eagles at home on Sunday.

Dec 102015
 
Ereck Flowers, New York Giants (June 8, 2015)

Ereck Flowers – © USA TODAY Sports Images

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NEW YORK GIANTS INJURY REPORT…
LT Ereck Flowers (ankle) and LB Devon Kennard (hamstring/foot) did not practice on Thursday. Kennard was spotted in the locker room wearing a boot on his right foot. It is unlikely that he will be able to play on Monday against the Miami Dolphins. Flowers appears to be no longer using crutches but may be a longshot to play as well.

RT Marshall Newhouse (back) and S Brandon Meriweather (knee) were limited in practice.

HEAD COACH TOM COUGHLIN…
The transcript of Tom Coughlin’s press conference on Thursday is available in The Corner Forum while the video is available at Giants.com.

THE PLAYERS SPEAK…
The following transcripts and video of player media sessions on Thursday are available in The Corner Forum and at Giants.com:

ARTICLES

WHAT’S UP NEXT…
The Giants practice on Friday and hold physical recovery cycles on Saturday in advance of Monday’s away game against the Miami Dolphins.

Dec 082015
 
Zak DeOssie, New York Giants (November 3, 2014)

Zak DeOssie – © USA TODAY Sports Images

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GIANTS PLACE LARRY DONNELL AND ZAK DeOSSIE ON INJURED RESERVE…
The New York Giants have place tight end Larry Donnell (neck) and long snapper Zak DeOssie (wrist) on season-ending Injured Reserve. Donnell injured his neck on December 1st in a game against the New Orleans Saints and has missed the last four games. DeOssie had not missed a game in his 8-year career. He appeared on the team’s injury report on Saturday with the wrist injury but played in the game against the New York Jets. According to The New York Daily News, DeOssie has ligament damage in the wrist that will require surgery.

To fill the vacant roster spots, the Giants signed cornerback Tramain Jacobs and long snapper Danny Aiken to the 53-man roster.

The Giants signed Jacobs to the Practice Squad in September, promoted him to the 53-man roster in early November, and re-signed him to the Practice Squad nine days later after he had played in two regular-season games. Jacobs was originally signed as an undrafted rookie free agent by the Baltimore Ravens after the 2014 NFL Draft. He played in three games as rookie after spending nine weeks on Baltimore’s Practice Squad. Jacobs finished the season on Injured Reserve with a thigh injury. The Ravens waived Jacobs in August 2015.

Aiken was originally signed by the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted rookie free agent after the 2011 NFL Draft. Since then, he has spent time with Bills (2011), New England Patriots (2011-14), and Carolina Panthers (2015). He played in 63 regular-season games and 10 postseason games for the Patriots, including Super Bowl XLVI against the Giants.

PRACTICE SQUAD MOVES…
The New York Giants have signed offensive tackle Jake Rodgers and cornerback Leon McFadden to the Practice Squad. The vacancies were created when the Giants signed linebacker James Morris and cornerback Tramain Jacobs to the 53-man roster.

Rodgers was originally drafted in the 7th round of the 2015 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons waived him in early September. Rodgers is a developmental prospect with a nice combination of size and athletic ability.

The Giants signed McFadden off of the Practice Squad of the Arizona Cardinals in October 2015, but waived him on December 5th after he had played in two games. McFadden was originally drafted in the 3rd round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. He played in all 16 games as a rookie with two starts. The Browns waived him in August 2014. Since then, he has spent time with the Jets, 49ers, Cardinals, and Giants. McFadden played in seven games for the 49ers in 2014. The 49ers waived him in September 2015.

RUEBEN RANDLE ON WFAN
The audio of Tuesday’s WFAN Radio interview with wide receiver Rueben Randle is available on CBS New York’s website.

NOTES…
Wide receiver Odell Beckham’s 2,459 yards is the highest total ever for a player in his first 24 games.

Beckham is the first receiver in Giants history with five consecutive 100-yard games.

Wide receiver/returner Dwayne Harris became the first player in Giants history with touchdowns on a punt return, kickoff return, and a reception in the same season.

Quarterback Eli Manning’s 72-yard touchdown pass to Beckham was his 14th career completion of at least 70 yards. The Giants have scored on all of them.

The Giants have rushed for at least 100 yards just twice in their first 12 games for the first time in their history.

ARTICLES…

WHAT’S UP NEXT…
The players return to practice on Thursday to start preparing for Monday’s game against the Miami Dolphins.