INDIANAPOLIS — Giants running backs coach Jerald Ingram was trying to describe the kind of pain Ahmad Bradshaw endures from his injured feet. “For the average person who stubbed their toe on the bed, he feels that way all day long,” Ingram said.
That’s why it was a good sign Bradshaw was able to take part in the Giants’ first practice of Super Bowl week yesterday, even if it was on a limited basis. If he had sat out, it wouldn’t have been surprising because Bradshaw has been limited to about one practice a week since re-injuring his surgically repaired feet midway through the season.
The most severe injury is a reported cracked bone in his right foot, and this was his progress report yesterday.
“The bone is growing back in on my foot,” he said. It didn’t sound comfortable.
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The more Bradshaw can practice the better off he and the Giants will be on Sunday when they face the Patriots in Super Bowl XVI.
But Ingram will remain cautious.
“I don’t need him on his feet running plays that he’s basically been running for four years,” Ingram said.
Bradshaw missed four games during the regular season because of his foot injury. One of the games was the Giants’ 24-20 victory over the Patriots. The Giants managed to win in New England without him, but if they’re going to beat the Patriots on Sunday they’ll need a capable running game to keep pressure off quarterback Eli Manning.
That’s why Bradshaw’s availability is crucial. He has rushed for 200 yards in the Giants’ three postseason wins, including 20 carries for 74 yards in the NFC Championship against the 49ers.
“He’s one of the most underrated players in the league,” former Giants quarterback Phil Simms said of Bradshaw.
Maybe Bradshaw’s status is a good omen. Leading up to the Giants’ Super Bowl XXV victory over the Bills, tight end Mark Bavaro barely practiced because of an injured knee. Plaxico Burress didn’t practice (knee) the week of Super Bowl XLII and the Giants upset the previously unbeaten Patriots.
For Bradshaw, nursing his chronically injured feet has been a way of life since he first injured them in college.
“The hardest thing is getting back into the groove on Sunday,” he said, “just getting your feet under yourself, which is why I practiced Friday. Offensively, technique-wise, I just work on that as much as I can.”
Ingram, the running backs coach since Tom Coughlin joined the Giants, has devised a system for giving Bradshaw the information he’ll need to make the most of what little practice time he does get.
“We go through all the protections he needs to get in so he knows how to take care of the quarterback because that’s the most important thing,” Ingram said. “Then, if there are some new plays he needs to get in, we make sure we get that covered. If there’s a new technique he has to do, we make sure we get that in.”
The objectives are to be prepared mentally, and not have any setbacks physically.
“At least it’s better this year than the year when he had both feet [injured],” Ingram said. “You would practice on a Friday and it would swell up so much that on Saturday you almost put him on crutches again because he was in so much pain. That’s been controlled a little more this year, but it’s all about pain threshold.”
Despite the pain and the missed practices, Bradshaw has continued to play at a high level and earn the respect of his coaches and teammates. He rushed for just 659 yards during the regular season, and his impact as a check down receiver and pass blocker has helped extend drives.
“He’s the toughest son of gun out there,” Ingram said. “He’s outright mean on game day. You love that about him. He’s the toughest guy I’ve ever been around from that standpoint. ”
Bad feet and all.
george.willis@nypost.com