Of the 89 players the Giants have on their roster, 88 of them were on the scene yesterday for the third organized team activity practice of the offseason. That’s a turnout to make Tom Coughlin grin from ear to ear.
The one absent player? Kicker Lawrence Tynes, who was hosting a charity golf tournament.
“He gave me notice well in advance that he would have this day to spend with that,” Coughlin said.
Since partaking in the offseason program is voluntary, Tynes technically did not even have to inform anyone of his whereabouts, but that approach doesn’t fly with the Giants. The near-perfect attendance is a byproduct of the lack of off-field issues with a team that has no player trying to leverage for an upgraded contract and no player simply deciding to work out elsewhere, which was the way with Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey.
“It makes the team closer, makes everybody comfortable around each other,” Eli Manning said of the full participation. “No one’s getting special treatment, special attention. No one has an ego about anything.”
Defensive end Osi Umenyiora, back at it after missing the entire 2008 season following knee surgery, looked spry and noticed a particular energy.
“We have a young team,” Umenyiora said. “I don’t think there are too many older guys who have been in the league for that long. Those are the guys who tend to want to not come because missing an OTA doesn’t mean anything to them. These guys out here are so hungry, everybody’s fighting and jockeying for position, everybody wants to play, everybody wants to be on the football field. You miss one day, you feel somebody might get a leg up on you.”
This was the first day for the offense to face the defense in non-contact drills and, as usual so early in the process, there was a mixture of good and bad. Mostly, Coughlin was pleased that the gang was all there.
“It sends the right message,” he said. “It tells everybody that every guy is here for the same reason and trying to help our team be as good as it can be. It is very difficult to get that done when we are not here.”
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As expected, disgruntled Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin has hired Manning’s agent, Tom Condon, according to multiple reports.
Condon, who did not confirm the move, replaces Drew Rosenhaus, who was fired by Boldin.
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Rookie LB Clint Sintim was forced off the field with an injury to his right hamstring that it appears will sideline him for a while. “That is not going to help him or us,” Coughlin said. . . .. Second-year WR Mario Manningham made a few catches downfield and said he is far more ready for the NFL than he was at this time a year ago.
DTs Fred Robbins and Barry Cofield, both coming off knee surgery, were limited to individual work. Cofield is further along than Robbins. . . . New LB Michael Boley (hip flexor) didn’t practice and CB Corey Webster (hip flexor) was limited. . . . WR David Tyree was back on the field after missing all of last season following knee surgery.