When Stevie Brown wrecked his knee while returning an interception during a preseason game against the New York Jets it was one of the early signs that the 2013 season wasn't going to go the way the New York Giants hoped it would.
Where is Brown, the play-making safety, in his rehab following surgery for a torn ACL? What has he been up to? What are his thoughts on the unexpectedly rough season the Giants have experienced? Brown is appearing at the Garden State Plaza Sports Authority in Paramus, N.J. to help benefit the New Jersey Boys & Girls Club Saturday, Dec. 14. As part of the promotion for the event Big Blue View was offered a few minutes of Brown's time.
Brown is now four months removed from crumpling to the MetLife Stadium turf with that torn ACL. He said he is hoping to begin trying to run straight ahead later this week.
"Right now everything is progressing nicely. No setbacks. It's going well," Brown said.
Brown says there is no target date for when he might be able to return to the field.
"I’m not trying to rush anything. From the time I had surgery in September they said it would be six to seven months before I started feeling like myself," Brown said. "I’m just staying on the timetable, not trying to push anything or do anything to have a setback."
Brown, now about four months into his rehab, said it has given him an appreciation for how difficult it has been for Terrell Thomas to come back from three ACL tears.
"I remember talking with T2 when I was down in Pensacola after surgery. I was like ‘man I don't know how you did it three times through this,' " Brown said. "Those first few weeks you're just kind of struggling to walk, you've got about a 30 percent bend in your knee. You definitely appreciate someone whose done it not only once, but three times."
Brown admitted it's been difficult to watch the Giants struggle this season.
"Very hard. These are the guys I've been with for two years. Working out in the offseason with ‘em, doing things off the field with ‘em. Guys that I've come to respect a lot. As a friend and a teammate it's definitely tough not to be out there," Brown said.
"It's hard to sit back and watch."
Brown, 26, intercepted eight passes while starting 11 games in a breakout 2012 season. The knee injury likely cost Brown a big payday as he will be a free agent this offseason. There are no guarantees, of course, but Brown said he "would like to be back with the Giants" in 2014.
The player who has benefited most from Brown's misfortune is Will Hill, who has been playing like one of the best safeties in the league since coming back from a season-opening four-game suspension.
"Will's an exciting player to watch, there's so many different things that he can do. I used to see it all the time in practice and now that he's able to do it on the field I'm proud of him," Brown said. "Definitely has a lot of talent. He's been working at staying out of trouble, he doesn't put himself in a lot of situations anymore, which is definitely good."
Boys & Girls Club Benefit
Brown will be signing autographs and there will a silent auction and a raffle to beneift the Boys & Girls Club. Buy tickets in advance at www.showclix.com/event/StevieBrown.