ORLANDO, Fla. — The outlook for Giants safety Kenny Phillips just keeps getting dimmer and dimmer.
Coach Tom Coughlin said yesterday that the Giants don’t expect Phillips to be available for full participation at the start of training camp, and Coughlin wasn’t exactly upbeat about Phillips in general.
Asked during the NFC coaches breakfast at the NFL’s annual meetings if Phillips can come back this season, Coughlin said: “I think so.”
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Phillips, the promising free safety whose 2009 season ended abruptly after just two games because of arthritis in his left knee that resulted in microfracture surgery, has not yet been cleared to run.
Phillips, who isn’t expected to participate in any of the offseason workouts or Big Blue’s June minicamp, vowed publicly after the signing of Pro Bowl safety Antrel Rolle this month that he would be back for the start of camp.
Coughlin appeared to throw cold water on those hopes yesterday.
“Kenny’s rehab is going very well, but he’s in stages,” Coughlin said. “He can’t even go out right now and just run. He’s still being very well-structured there. He’s started to [work out], but it’s not a do-anything-you-want-to-do type of a deal.”
At best, Phillips might be able to participate in one of the two daily practices early in camp, Coughlin added. But it is clear the Giants don’t plan to push the 2008 first-round pick.
“Like all people coming off that surgery, he’s got to be kind of brought along,” Coughlin said. “I don’t foresee [the medical staff] just saying, ‘Go ahead’ [at the start of camp]. The restrictions could be one-a-day. I hope not, but that’s the way it could be.”
The Giants’ concern about Phillips — and the possibility that the microfracture surgery could end his career — played a part in the signing of the ex-Cardinal Rolle to a $37 million deal on the first day of free agency.
The Giants are hoping to pair Phillips and Rolle for what would be one of the NFL’s strongest safety combinations, but Coughlin’s tone yesterday made it sound as if it could be wishful thinking for the foreseeable future.
Adding to Coughlin’s worry, the only other safeties on the roster are Michael Johnson and C.C. Brown — both of whom struggled mightily last season — and former undrafted free agent Sha’reff Rashad. Aaron Rouse was released earlier this month.
“[Pairing Phillips and Rolle] is what we would like to happen, but if it doesn’t, we’ve got to do a better job of answering that than we did last season,” Coughlin said of the safety play after Phillips went on injured reserve.
The Giants could target a safety high in the draft next month, but Rolle’s arrival already is easing some of Coughlin’s concerns about the position.
“Antrel Rolle is a guy who had an outstanding year,” Coughlin said. “He’s very athletic. He’s an excellent football player.”