Giants head coach Joe Judge joined Boomer and Gio on Tuesday morning and provided the latest injury updates as the team comes out of its bye week.
New York has been decimated by injury for much of the season, especially on the offensive side of the ball, but if things continue to trend in the right direction at practice this week, the team could be the healthiest it has been in weeks when it takes on the Buccaneers on Monday night.
One of Big Blue’s biggest absences has been running back Saquon Barkley, who has been out since Week 5 with an ankle injury. But Barkley practiced for the first time in nearly a month on Tuesday, and seems to be on track to suit up against the defending champions.
“He was out there yesterday practicing with us and moving around a bit,” Judge told Boomer and Gio. “We’ll kind of ramp him up throughout the week. I know he’s pushing to get back out there. I’d say yesterday as a positive step in the right direction. Hopefully we get him out there with us.”
Wide receiver Sterling Shepard did side work at practice on Tuesday, and could benefit from the extra time off in terms of being in play for Monday.
“A lot of progress, probably further ahead than we thought he would be,” Judge said. “We’ll see where he’s at. We’ll give him a couple extra day as far as moving around. The good thing is we get that extra day with Monday night…so we don’t really have to get him out there with the team until about Friday and get him rolling after practice.”
Offensive lineman Andrew Thomas was also back at practice after being placed on the IR with a foot injury in a loss to the Rams. He is eligible to play on Monday and could be ready to go if things continue to improve.
The Giants have won two out of their last three games, and would love to come out of the bye week with some momentum on the health front as well.
“If we can get our guys back, that’s something we’re looking forward to,” Judge said. “I think the guys have stepped up and did a good job and progressed as a team…but some of these guys are coming back off the mend. That’s something we’re looking forward to getting back.”
Listen to Judge's full interview with Boomer and Gio below!
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