Kenny Phillips to Start Training Camp on the PUP; Chad Jones Waived

Kenny Phillips to Start Training Camp on the PUP: Safety Kenny Phillips (knee) will begin training camp on the Physically-Unable-to-Perform (PUP) List.

“He’ll be with the trainers until the trainers are willing to let him begin to practice,” said Head Coach Tom Coughlin. “I’m sure when that happens it will be one a day…They’re going to work with him on the side and determine exactly where he is. Part of this is watching after a workout how the player comes back, how long it takes for his recovery, is there any swelling, those are the things they got to determine. They’ve worked with him all spring and they’ve monitored him all summer. Because of the nature and the seriousness of the injury they certainly are not going to rush back out there until they’re 100 percent sure he can go through a two-hour practice…Hopefully within a week or so we’ll have him back. I could be wrong, don’t nail me to just seven days. But I’m hoping by the second week, we will get him back.”

“We just want him to take it slow because we want him to be our starting safety when we line up against Carolina on (September) 12th,” General Manager Jerry Reese said.

Other Injury News: Coughlin also said that DE Osi Umenyiora (hip) and LB Keith Bulluck (knee) will be limited to one practice per day. TE Kevin Boss (ankle) and DT Jay Alford (knee) may also be limited.

“(Umenyiora is) one-a-day, we will manage that,” said Coughlin. “He wants to play, he wanted the other opinion. The doctors talked among themselves and conferred with each other and they felt this can be managed and will be managed and the corrective surgery can be done at another time. So Osi, who wants to play this year, will have the opportunity to play.”

“(Bulluck) has to come along slow, too,” said Coughlin. “On paper he’s one-a-day but we will have to see where that is. He worked out for us, worked out well, didn’t have any swelling. He’s going to continue to get stronger and better and as he goes through this. We’ll do what we have to do to manage that and I think that the combination of all these things is going to give all these young guys lots of reps, too. It will work to our advantage, we’re going to make it work to our advantage.”

Chad Jones Waived; Giants Claim Eagle Off of Waivers: The Giants waived/injured safety Chad Jones yesterday. Jones was seriously injured last month in an auto accident. The Giants said in their press release that if Jones successfully clears waivers, the team will be placed on the Reserve/Non-Football Injury (NFI) List.

“Obviously the tremendous blow to Chad Jones hurt our team,” said Coughlin. “We all feel helpless in regard to that, we all want to be there for Chad. We all want to see his recovery is complete. We keep him foremost in our minds. He would have been a big factor helping us. We don’t have him.”

“I’m just hopeful that Chad can have a normal life and walk without a limp at this point,” said General Manager Jerry Reese. “Anything after that is a plus for me. If he makes it back to the football field, that’s fantastic. But really, my hopes and prayers are that he can have a normal life and walk without a limp and be a normal person. Right now, that’s really what I’m wishing for for him.”

To fill Jones’ roster spot, the Giants claimed defensive end/linebacker Alex Hall off of waivers from the Philadelphia Eagles.

“I think Alex Hall will be a very good outside linebacker in a 3-4 front,” Eagles’ Head Coach Andy Reid said when Hall was waived. “We worked him as a linebacker, and also worked him as a defensive end. After the evaluation, we just felt like his best thing would probably be a 3-4, and I think Alex can definitely play in this league and be very successful, he’s just got to get into the right situation.”

David Tyree to Retire as a Giant: According to The Star-Ledger and The Daily News, former Giants’ wide receiver and Super Bowl XLII hero David Tyree has signed a one-day contract with the Giants so he can retire officially as a New York Giant today.

Tyree, who was drafted in the 6th round of the 2003 NFL Draft by the Giants. The Giants waived him last year before the season started. During that time, he caught 54 passes for 650 yards and four touchdowns. He was voted to the Pro Bowl in 2005 as a special teams player.

Article on CEO/President John Mara: New York Giants Co-Owner John Mara Says He Still Has Full Confidence In Coach Tom Coughlin by Ralph Vacchiano of The Daily News

Article on Former Giant DE Michael Strahan: Strahan Chat Sealed Deal For Bulluck by Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com

Quotes: Head Coach Tom Coughlin on LB Keith Bulluck: “We’ve been looking at this young man since he was a free agent, wondering when it would be that he would actually get the green light medically to be able to perform and to play. As soon as that occurred, he was here. We’ve been vigilant in regard to that. We think and believe that this guy is an outstanding football player. He’s 33 years old, he’s had some outstanding experiences, he’s played on some very good teams, he’s had some very shocking experiences as a football player in terms of expectation levels not being achieved. He’s a tough guy. He played in Syracuse, so you know he’s a tough guy. But I think he brings a seriousness to the table. He’s a no-nonsense guy. He is emotional. He does have the ability to communicate. He is a veteran football player. He brings the characteristics that we’re looking for. And everyone would like to discuss where he can play. He can play in the middle. He can play on the outside. He can do a lot of things. We’re excited about him.”

Coughlin on WR Ramses Barden: “I can tell you right now that we have great expectations for Ramses. He’s got a great opportunity, but for our team to be where we want to be, we think he’s got to take the bull by the horns and I think he feels the same way.”

Coughlin on who will return kickoffs and punts: “We have punt return experiments and we have kick return experiments. Danny Ware would be an excellent guy to be our kick returner. It’s just too bad the season opened with the injury a year ago. Here’s a guy just frothing for a chance and hopefully we can get him on the field and get him some playing time and not have any setbacks. I feel he’s a good candidate for kickoff returns. The punt return thing we’re going to continue to work with and of course the No. 1 thing is going to be ball security.”

Coughlin on P Matt Dodge: “He showed us a very strong leg and a guy who was humble and worked hard. I think we can build on that. He went through the spring having his bad days and his good days, and on his good days he was really rocking it. Quite frankly we had two competitive people at that spot and we made the decision based on going forward in camp and based on numbers, etc. We felt this young man could be taught and could be brought along so he will continue to grow and develop during camp. We will have ourselves a guy who can really drive the ball and if we can get the consistency thing going than perhaps we can get him to do some of the things that separate guys at that position at the pro level, which is the ability directionally punt the ball. He came along as a holder as well.”