New York Giants sign QB Brian Lewerke - Clayton Thorson Waived/injured

The New York Giants signed quarterback Brian Lewerke Sunday night, giving them some depth at the position after third-stringer Clayton Thorson suffered a concussion in Saturday’s preseason opener.

Update: The Giants announced Monday afternoon that Thorson has been waived/injured.

The designation places non-vested players on the waiver wire while acknowledging their injury. If the player makes it through the waiver wire without being claimed by another team, he reverts to the original team’s (in this case the Giants) injured reserve.

While the NFL is once again allowing teams to bring an unlimited number of players back from the injured reserve, only players who land on the IR list after final cut-downs are eligible to return. So, if Thorson isn’t claimed and reverts to the Giants’ IR list, his season is over.

Teams can release players from their injured reserve with an injury settlement based on the amount of time they’re expected to miss. This allows them to sign with other teams, or re-sign with the original team after the settlement period plus three weeks passes.

Lewerke started for four years at Michigan State before entering the league as an undrafted free agent with the New England Patriots. He was waived before the 2020 season and played in the Spring League this year.

The Giants play a preseason game with the Browns this Sunday, and will likely lean on Lewerke and backup Mike Glennon. It is unknown whether Thorson will be available, but his performance was disappointing even before the injury.

The Giants have to trim their roster to 85 players by Tuesday. Coach Joe Judge said Sunday that the team will be looking for help across the roster as the other NFL teams do the same, so you can likely expect a good bit of shuffling along the bottom of the roster this week.