Good morning, New York Giants fans! Here is your Tuesday morning notebook as the Giants begin to gear up Sunday's season opener against the Washington Redskins.

Let's start with some tidbits from head coach Tom Coughlin's Monday briefing with beat reporters.

• Defensive end Osi Umenyiora is not practicing and is unlikely to play against Washington. Coughlin said it is "a little early" for Umenyiora, still rehabbing from knee surgery.
• Bear Pascoe will play more tight end than fullback this season, leaving the bulk of the fullback work to rookie Henry Hynoski.
• Coughlin said "we will have to wait and see" when asked if Domenik Hixon would return punts against the Redskins.

Tight end Jake Ballard Monday addressed the well-documented concerns about the position he plays.

"When you lose a player like Kevin Boss, he is a great player and he caught a lot of balls for us last year. I guess it is hard for fans to realize that when he leaves, there is not going to be anybody here to replace him and I'm not saying anybody is trying to replace him. We are just trying to help out the team the best we can," Ballard said. "We are going to try hard to fill a void but I think these three guys all have something to bring to the table and I think that we are going to do well together."

Rookie linebacker Spencer Paysinger was asked about the team's decision to keep four rookie linebackers.

"I don't think there is any other team in the country that kept four rookie linebackers," Paysinger said. "All of us individually have something we can bring to special teams, Mark (Herzlich) is a bigger guy who can run down the field, Jacquian (Williams) can cover people and Greg (Jones) is really good inside the box and I can do a couple things, so we all bring something to the table."

Rex Grossman Will Be Redskins' Week 1 Starter Against New York Giants, According To Report - SB Nation DC
It appears the answer to the Redskins' quarterback quandary has been solved, for now. According to a report, Rex Grossman will be the Week 1 starter against the Giants.

Tiki has 'moved forward accordingly': agent
A Sports Illustrated report Monday quoted Tiki Barber’s agent, Mark Lepselter, as saying he is "flabbergasted that Tiki has not had an opportunity with any team, especially when rosters were at 90 players."

After the SI article caem out Lepselter said "You can’t worry about the things in life you can’t control and Tiki has moved forward accordingly.’’