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Practice Report for Monday, June 14
Shockey's foot continues to be sore subject for Giants.
By Michael Eisen, Giants.com
Related links - Message boards | Latest news | Draft Central
June 14, 2004
East Rutherford, N.J. - Because of a canceled flight, Jeremy Shockey did not return to Giants Stadium in time to attend this morning's mini-camp practice.
"There's nothing really new to report. It is on-going process of evaluation. There will be various opinions formed from different people, I am sure, as to how this should be treated."
- Coach Tom Coughlin
Coach Tom Coughlin would like to have had Shockey on the field, whom he said attended a wedding, but whether he was here or not, the two-time Pro Bowl tight end would not have practiced. An X-ray revealed what Coughlin called a "hot spot" on Shockey's injured foot.
Shockey is in the process of getting additional opinions regarding the exact diagnosis before the club and he decide on a course of treatment. Shockey will almost certainly miss the remainder of the current mini-camp. But what about training camp, which the players will report to on July 29 and begin practicing the following day?
"There has been no discussion about that at all until the decision is made on the exact treatment," Coughlin said.
Asked if Shockey might need surgery, Coughlin said, "We are just trying to figure out where we are. We will let you know as soon as we know something other than the fact that he is going to get multiple opinions. I can tell you that."
Shockey's latest foot problem surfaced last week, when he missed a mini-camp practice on Wednesday. The next day, Coughlin said Shockey would not return to the field until he experienced no soreness.
"There's nothing really new to report," Coughlin said today. "It is on-going process of evaluation. There will be various opinions formed from different people, I am sure, as to how this should be treated. I really don't have a whole lot of new stuff to tell you, but as soon as I do, I will let you know."
Foot problems are nothing new for Shockey. He said he played seven games last season with a stress reaction before he was sidelined for good with a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. As a rookie in 2002, Shockey sprained a ligament in his foot in a preseason game, then played through a painful case of turn toe.
"(We are trying to) figure out the direction that we should progress - in terms of that is the next step - not only the treatment but what is the next step," Coughlin said. "We have our doctor's opinion and he is going to, I am sure, seek at least a second opinion. So, that is the normal process. There is nothing unusual about that."
Coughlin was asked whether Shockey's foot had a stress reaction, "like there was last year."
"Right now what has been seen on the X-ray is what they call a `hot spot,'" the coach said. "We are going to take it from there and look at it and decide. You are asking me questions that I can't answer. I am not a doctor. All I am telling you is that there will be another opinion and then we will decide. Once we get all of the information…then the decision will be made on the direction of his treatment."
Coughlin isn't certain what the diagnosis is, nor is he sure what treatment Shockey will have. But he does have a time frame in his mind for fixing the problem.
"ASAP," he said. "ASAP is the time frame."
Notes
Shockey's absence has left the Giants thin at tight end. Marcellus Rivers isn't working after recently undergoing hernia surgery, and Darnell Dinkins is sidelined with a fractured foot. That leaves the team with just two healthy tight ends, second-year pro Visanthe Shiancoe and Mark Inkrott, who recently returned after starting 10 games for the Cologne Centurions of NFL Europe.
Shiancoe has received the bulk of the work.
"I just have to pick up the slack," Shiancoe said. "It's getting me used to different situations, I can react quicker now, and it's pretty much getting me ready."
Before Shockey's injury, Shiancoe had primarily played on the line, a position that requires more blocking. Since then, he has stepped into Shockey's position as the "move" tight end, which requires him to go in motion more often and tests his receiving ability.
"Once Jeremy went down I went straight to the Y (move tight end), and that's a whole different ballgame there," Shiancoe said. "At the tight end we have to know about four positions, and sometimes it gets confusing.
"I've been catching the hard ones, but when it comes to the easy ones sometimes I drop them. I can definitely step it up. All of us tight ends are trained. We all can do the same thing."
As a rookie in 2003, Shiancoe played in all 16 games, with seven starts. He caught 10 passes for 56 yards and two touchdowns. The increased work he's getting now could help him improve those numbers this year.
"He has an awful lot on his plate," Coughlin said. "Right now, it is the way to go, anyway, to have him learn both the move tight end and the stationary tight end. He has done pretty well with it. He has a ways to go. Things do run into each other occasionally. This is a great opportunity for him. He and Mark are literally taking all of the snaps."
Shiancoe knows he won't get quite as much work when Shockey and the other tight ends return. But he also knows he will have a busy summer if Shockey is forced to miss part of training camp.
"There's always a possibility and I have to be prepared for that," Shiancoe said. "That's why I'm busting my butt, and I'm not going to go down. I'm a heavyweight. It's all on my shoulders and I have to step it up, that's all.
Quarterback Kurt Warner continues to learn the offense and about his new teammates, but he is far from satisfied about how he's performed in practice.
"It's frustrating," Warner said. "Every day it seems there are a couple of things that you walk back thinking, `What in the world were you thinking when you did that?' It's not natural yet. Learning the offense and thinking about so much, it hasn't gotten to the point where it just clicks, where everything slows down and you can just play. That part is frustrating for me, because after doing it a certain way for so long and then having to come in and kind of start over, it's frustrating. You want to be successful every time out there and not make any mistakes. And right now there are a couple of mistakes a day that bother me. But we'll get over that soon enough and get back to playing."
On some plays, Warner isn't certain where he wants to throw the ball. Other times, he hesitates a split second before firing, resulting in an incompletion. Those and other shortcomings will be alleviated with time, but Warner wants to accelerate the process.
"You just don't have that comfortable feel," he said. "You're not quite sure where everybody is going to be. Sometimes you're turning and throwing quick. There are a number of different things out there and it's not to the point where everything is natural. Even the cadence isn't natural yet. All the timing things, the feel, the footwork - all that stuff is so new, it's frustrating. A couple of times a day, there is something and I can't stop thinking about it. You're thinking, '`Why did you do that?' It's frustrating. But we'll fight through it and soon enough it will get to the point where it's second nature and you don't have to think about it. But it's just not there yet.
"Once you're been there and done it, as I have, that's what makes it even more frustrating. I'm doing things out there I don't normally do. And that's frustrating to me. I just walk back shaking my head (saying), `You know better than that.' I wouldn't have done that six years ago, now I'm doing it and that's the hard part. You don't go back to your room and say you're just learning that. You want to be perfect, you want to pick this thing up fast and then you want to run. I want to be perfect every time out, whether it's mini-camp, whether I'm here one day or six years. I want to do things right. It's more that personal frustration in where I've been and what I've accomplished and what I know I'm capable of. And then I go out and do something contrary to that."
Coughlin said defensive tackle William Joseph is recovering well from recent surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle.
"He is out of the sling and he is running," Coughlin said. "But those things take time."
Asked if Joseph will be ready for training camp, Coughlin said, "He will be ready at some point in camp. I am not sure he will be ready to start right away."
Shockey's foot continues to be sore subject for Giants.
By Michael Eisen, Giants.com
Related links - Message boards | Latest news | Draft Central
June 14, 2004
East Rutherford, N.J. - Because of a canceled flight, Jeremy Shockey did not return to Giants Stadium in time to attend this morning's mini-camp practice.
"There's nothing really new to report. It is on-going process of evaluation. There will be various opinions formed from different people, I am sure, as to how this should be treated."
- Coach Tom Coughlin
Coach Tom Coughlin would like to have had Shockey on the field, whom he said attended a wedding, but whether he was here or not, the two-time Pro Bowl tight end would not have practiced. An X-ray revealed what Coughlin called a "hot spot" on Shockey's injured foot.
Shockey is in the process of getting additional opinions regarding the exact diagnosis before the club and he decide on a course of treatment. Shockey will almost certainly miss the remainder of the current mini-camp. But what about training camp, which the players will report to on July 29 and begin practicing the following day?
"There has been no discussion about that at all until the decision is made on the exact treatment," Coughlin said.
Asked if Shockey might need surgery, Coughlin said, "We are just trying to figure out where we are. We will let you know as soon as we know something other than the fact that he is going to get multiple opinions. I can tell you that."
Shockey's latest foot problem surfaced last week, when he missed a mini-camp practice on Wednesday. The next day, Coughlin said Shockey would not return to the field until he experienced no soreness.
"There's nothing really new to report," Coughlin said today. "It is on-going process of evaluation. There will be various opinions formed from different people, I am sure, as to how this should be treated. I really don't have a whole lot of new stuff to tell you, but as soon as I do, I will let you know."
Foot problems are nothing new for Shockey. He said he played seven games last season with a stress reaction before he was sidelined for good with a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. As a rookie in 2002, Shockey sprained a ligament in his foot in a preseason game, then played through a painful case of turn toe.
"(We are trying to) figure out the direction that we should progress - in terms of that is the next step - not only the treatment but what is the next step," Coughlin said. "We have our doctor's opinion and he is going to, I am sure, seek at least a second opinion. So, that is the normal process. There is nothing unusual about that."
Coughlin was asked whether Shockey's foot had a stress reaction, "like there was last year."
"Right now what has been seen on the X-ray is what they call a `hot spot,'" the coach said. "We are going to take it from there and look at it and decide. You are asking me questions that I can't answer. I am not a doctor. All I am telling you is that there will be another opinion and then we will decide. Once we get all of the information…then the decision will be made on the direction of his treatment."
Coughlin isn't certain what the diagnosis is, nor is he sure what treatment Shockey will have. But he does have a time frame in his mind for fixing the problem.
"ASAP," he said. "ASAP is the time frame."
Notes
Shockey's absence has left the Giants thin at tight end. Marcellus Rivers isn't working after recently undergoing hernia surgery, and Darnell Dinkins is sidelined with a fractured foot. That leaves the team with just two healthy tight ends, second-year pro Visanthe Shiancoe and Mark Inkrott, who recently returned after starting 10 games for the Cologne Centurions of NFL Europe.
Shiancoe has received the bulk of the work.
"I just have to pick up the slack," Shiancoe said. "It's getting me used to different situations, I can react quicker now, and it's pretty much getting me ready."
Before Shockey's injury, Shiancoe had primarily played on the line, a position that requires more blocking. Since then, he has stepped into Shockey's position as the "move" tight end, which requires him to go in motion more often and tests his receiving ability.
"Once Jeremy went down I went straight to the Y (move tight end), and that's a whole different ballgame there," Shiancoe said. "At the tight end we have to know about four positions, and sometimes it gets confusing.
"I've been catching the hard ones, but when it comes to the easy ones sometimes I drop them. I can definitely step it up. All of us tight ends are trained. We all can do the same thing."
As a rookie in 2003, Shiancoe played in all 16 games, with seven starts. He caught 10 passes for 56 yards and two touchdowns. The increased work he's getting now could help him improve those numbers this year.
"He has an awful lot on his plate," Coughlin said. "Right now, it is the way to go, anyway, to have him learn both the move tight end and the stationary tight end. He has done pretty well with it. He has a ways to go. Things do run into each other occasionally. This is a great opportunity for him. He and Mark are literally taking all of the snaps."
Shiancoe knows he won't get quite as much work when Shockey and the other tight ends return. But he also knows he will have a busy summer if Shockey is forced to miss part of training camp.
"There's always a possibility and I have to be prepared for that," Shiancoe said. "That's why I'm busting my butt, and I'm not going to go down. I'm a heavyweight. It's all on my shoulders and I have to step it up, that's all.
Quarterback Kurt Warner continues to learn the offense and about his new teammates, but he is far from satisfied about how he's performed in practice.
"It's frustrating," Warner said. "Every day it seems there are a couple of things that you walk back thinking, `What in the world were you thinking when you did that?' It's not natural yet. Learning the offense and thinking about so much, it hasn't gotten to the point where it just clicks, where everything slows down and you can just play. That part is frustrating for me, because after doing it a certain way for so long and then having to come in and kind of start over, it's frustrating. You want to be successful every time out there and not make any mistakes. And right now there are a couple of mistakes a day that bother me. But we'll get over that soon enough and get back to playing."
On some plays, Warner isn't certain where he wants to throw the ball. Other times, he hesitates a split second before firing, resulting in an incompletion. Those and other shortcomings will be alleviated with time, but Warner wants to accelerate the process.
"You just don't have that comfortable feel," he said. "You're not quite sure where everybody is going to be. Sometimes you're turning and throwing quick. There are a number of different things out there and it's not to the point where everything is natural. Even the cadence isn't natural yet. All the timing things, the feel, the footwork - all that stuff is so new, it's frustrating. A couple of times a day, there is something and I can't stop thinking about it. You're thinking, '`Why did you do that?' It's frustrating. But we'll fight through it and soon enough it will get to the point where it's second nature and you don't have to think about it. But it's just not there yet.
"Once you're been there and done it, as I have, that's what makes it even more frustrating. I'm doing things out there I don't normally do. And that's frustrating to me. I just walk back shaking my head (saying), `You know better than that.' I wouldn't have done that six years ago, now I'm doing it and that's the hard part. You don't go back to your room and say you're just learning that. You want to be perfect, you want to pick this thing up fast and then you want to run. I want to be perfect every time out, whether it's mini-camp, whether I'm here one day or six years. I want to do things right. It's more that personal frustration in where I've been and what I've accomplished and what I know I'm capable of. And then I go out and do something contrary to that."
Coughlin said defensive tackle William Joseph is recovering well from recent surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle.
"He is out of the sling and he is running," Coughlin said. "But those things take time."
Asked if Joseph will be ready for training camp, Coughlin said, "He will be ready at some point in camp. I am not sure he will be ready to start right away."
