A Giant falls: Terrell Thomas injury leaves NY in trouble
In a preseason game against the Chicago Bears on Aug. 22, the New York Giants lost their leading tackler from each of the last two seasons. He’ll miss the entire 2011 campaign. On the same play they lost the 2010 team leader in interceptions.
That’s because cornerback Terrell Thomas was the leader in both. New York’s offseason has been anything but smooth, thanks to the dramatics surrounding Osi Umenyiora and the league-wide lockout, but Thomas’ likely season-ending ACL tear looks to have a bigger impact on the Giants’ regular season than either of those issues.
John Fennelly covers the Giants for The Giants Blog. He said there were many with high expectations for Thomas in 2011 given his terrific 2010 campaign.
“Thomas has led the Giants in tackles the past two years, but that is more of an indictment of the team’s poor play more than it is a major accomplishment,” Fennelly said. “He was coming into his own as a CB and had been on many experts’ preseason Pro Bowl watch lists.”
Ed Valentine of SB Nation‘s Giants blog Big Blue View said Fennelly’s loss could dramatically hurt the team’s defense.
“His importance can’t be overstated,” Valentine said. “Justin Tuck said Thomas was the Giants’ best corner and that he was headed to the Pro Bowl.”
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While the loss of Thomas may be the biggest blow to New York’s secondary, it’s not the only one, and that makes his departure even more frightening.
“The Giants have also lost two other corners (Bruce Johnson and Brian Witherspoon) to season-ending injuries, and No. 1 pick Prince Amukamara will be out several weeks with a broken foot,” Valentine said. “Thomas was playing in the slot in nickel situations and is also a tremendous tackler and run defender. His loss subtracts a lot of athleticism and a tremendous playmaker from the defense.”
So how do the Giants plan on addressing Thomas’ absence? According to Fennelly, several other defensive backs will have to step up.
“They need Prince Amukamara to come in midseason and hit the ground running,” he said. “Until then, they will use Aaron Ross, a former first-round draft choice who has had difficulty staying healthy, in his place. They are also planning on using Pro Bowl safety Antrel Rolle as a third corner.”
Injuries may come to define the 2011 New York secondary. Along with moving Rolle into a situational cornerback role, New York recently signed 10-year veteran Brian Williams, a man who spent the last two seasons in Atlanta and has a history of knee issues.
Corey Webster and the aforementioned Aaron Ross will also play an increased role in the New York secondary, but injuries to those two players contributed to Thomas’ 2010 ascendancy in the first place.
While the immediate impact of the injury for both Thomas and the Giants is apparent, what about the future? What kind of a role will there be for Thomas next season and beyond, considering this is his second ACL injury?
“The injury is a problem for Thomas in a couple of ways,” Valentine said. “This will be the second ACL surgery on his right knee, and word from orthopedic surgeons is that second ACL surgeries have a lower success rate than original ACL surgeries. So, that puts a complete recovery by Thomas in doubt. The second issue is that this is the last year of his contract, meaning it will cost him a ton of money and could wind up with him in another uniform (see what happened to Steve Smith).”
Losing a player as dynamic as Thomas would be a huge blow to any team in the NFL, but couple his injury with the other losses to the New York secondary and the pressure on the team’s pass rushers for the season intensifies. However, Fennelly points to special teams and several players coming back from injury as reasons the Giants may be able to overcome their offseason obstacles.
“They did not get better roster-wise from 2010, but they do get wide receiver Domenik Hixon and defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka back from injury,” he said. “The special teams will be better simply because Hixon is back. They also have Devin Thomas returning kicks, along with rookie Jerrel Jernigan. Matt Dodge may not be the punter, but if he is, he will be a year better and wiser.”
Valentine, on the other hand, doesn’t foresee a drastic change in the team’s performance one-way or the other for this season.
“I think the Giants season is likely going to look a lot like last year’s season,” he said. “They are most likely a ‘bubble’ playoff team and the season could go either way. ”
Given all the turmoil and turnover in the roster, the 2011 iteration of the Giants will be an interesting one to watch – almost as interesting as the future of their promising but injury-prone young defensive back.
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