(Photo Credit: BOBBY O’HARA/ PureSportsNY)
After a 40-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Monday Night Football, the Giants found out they also lost CB Prince Amukamara to a season ending bicep injury. This is just more salt added to the wound for this Giants team that already has a long list of guys already out for the season with names like Victor Cruz, Jon Beason, and Walter Thurmond to name a few.
“The unfortunate thing that occurred last night was a young man that was playing very good football, Prince Amukamara, was injured and we won’t have him going forward,” coach Tom Coughlin said today on a conference call. “I feel very badly for Prince Amukamara, particularly the quality of the year he was having, then to have this happen. He will recover, do well, and come back, and we move on.”
Amukamara has a history of injuries since being drafted into the league by the Giants, but this one couldn’t come at a worse time. Amukamara’s injury really cuts the secondary thin if you consider that Walter Thurmond (pectoral) and Trumaine McBride (thumb) are also done for the year with injuries. Not only that, but the cornerback was having his best season yet. Some might agree that he was playing at an even higher level than Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who the team brought over from Denver this offseason.
Antrel Rolle who has been a mentor to Amukamara since he was drafted said losing him was definitely “a tough pill to swallow.”
Injuries aside though, the Giants will now have to find a way to cover opposing corners without Amukamara and that most likely starts with Zach Bowman seeing plenty of time on the field on gamedays. Bowman played most of the game against the Colts on Monday and the seven- year vet will be looked upon to make up for that loss the rest of the way. Other than Bowman, look for slot corner Jayron Hosley to get more time and possibly newly signed cornerback Mike Harris.
“We certainly have to analyze and evaluate that going forward here,” Coughlin said. “We did bring in a young man (Harris), thinking we needed extra reinforcements last week. We’ll probably have to do the same thing again, and we will certainly have to spend a lot of time bringing these new people to a point where they understand the basic concepts from which we coach and then the adjustments that you make going forward into a game. You will have to do a great job teaching a game plan. But as far as restrictions go, I am sure we are going to have to be very selective. Perhaps we will have to taper a little bit with the broadness of the plan. We will go ahead and work with that this afternoon and this evening and, first of all, square up with what personnel are going to be playing where and what we think they can handle.”