NFC East Watch: Giants, Jason Pierre-Paul Agree to Deal

Pierre-Paul and the team were at odds in September, with the player insisting he was ready to return after losing a finger in the accident and club personnel disagreeing. The Giants, who received a two-week exemption from the league so that Pierre-Paul could work with the team’s rehab staff and also participate in practice, have reportedly been eyeing a Week 10 return for Pierre-Paul, a home contest against the Patriots and the Giants’ last game before their bye.

The biggest remaining hurdle, though, is still to come, and that is determining when Pierre-Paul will be ready to return to the field to help a Giants pass rush that is ranked 31st in the league in sacks.

The defensive end made a major leap in his progress in just his second day with the team, going from stretching and drills on the side with trainers to actual football reps with the rest of the squad. Per Garafolo, that means Pierre-Paul will be a free agent at the end of this season though the Giants could once again use the franchise tag. Pierre-Paul, who signed his one-year contract on Tuesday night, looked so good and is progressing so quickly that it may be possible he takes the field next week against the Buccaneers.

Coughlin said Pierre-Paul’s teammates were glad to have him back among them.

“I don’t know about subdued, ” Coughlin said.

For each week Pierre-Paul is on the active roster, he gets a $214,000 bonus, up to seven weeks and a maximum of $1.5 million. It is a far cry from the $14.8 million he was to make on the original, pre-injury tender, as only the $1.5 million base salary is guaranteed. “We’ll just see how fast this comes along”. I asked him what he weighed, he said 268, and he was right on the money. “He’s anxious to play right now”.

Coughlin said the Giants hope Pierre-Paul is right in thinking his damaged right hand – from which he lost his index finger – won’t affect his play. Grip is an important part of getting through and while he can get by on his speed in certain situations, being unable to throw the offensive lineman off of you, especially when trying to go through a number of them towards the quarterback, could be a problem.

“Not necessarily”, Coughlin said. But the Giants do not have any concerns about his strength, Coughlin said.