The New York Giants reached the mandated 75-man roster limit on Monday. Friday, the Giants and the other NFL teams have to pare their rosters down to the 53-man regular-season limit.
Cornerback Terrell Thomas knows that his name will be a topic of conversation when the Giants meet to discuss how to construct their season-opening roster. Do the Giants wait for Thomas, hoping he can rehab his twice surgically-repaired and now "aggravated" ACL, thus using a roster spot on a player who can't play right now? And may not be able to play at all? Or, do they put him on Injured Reserve and move on?
[Related: PUP list doesn't thrill Canty]
Thomas knows what the situation is. He visits team doctor Russell Warren on Wednesday and hopes to be cleared to begin running.
"I do understand it’s a business and it comes with it. That’s why I’m here working my butt of every day. It’s a numbers game. They drafted a first rounder last year and a second rounder this year and those guys are gunning for my spot and I understand that. I was that guy before, so I respect it and I understand that it’s a part of the business,"
Thomas revealed that he could have opted for a third surgery on the knee if he did not believe he could play this season, saying it was a "coin flip" whether to rehab or face another surgery.
"My goal is to play tomorrow if I could if they allow me, but you never know. I think Ronnie (Barnes) is going to keep me under the wraps. They want to save me for the long haul and I understand the process since I aggravated my injury, which I missed all last year so I don’t want to do that again. I’m just working my butt off to get back and help this team as much as I can," Thomas said. "I’m very confident in myself and where I stand with this team, but it’s a business. You see guys get cut left and right on these judgment days."