Jason Pierre-Paul declined interview requests on Thursday, saying he wasn’t feeling well. He wasn’t feeling any better a day later. The Giants took the field for practice on Friday and Pierre-Paul was not out there, staying inside because he is sick.
It remains to be seen how this affects JPP moving forward, but he does have an extra recovery day with the Giants not playing until Monday night against the Vikings at MetLife Stadium.
It has been an extremely quiet season for Pierre-Paul, who notched a sack in the opener against the Cowboys and has not had one since. He missed all of training camp and all four preseason games coming off back surgery, and he has not yet regained his form. In addition to failing to apply much pass-rush pressure, Pierre-Paul also has not been as aggressive against the run as he was the previous two years.
Teammate Justin Tuck theorized Pierre-Paul’s issue is “more mental than it is physical’’ as Pierre-Paul learns to trust his back and has to deal with criticism for the first time in his three-year career.
The only other Giants player not to participate in Friday’s practice was running back David Wilson, who rode a stationary bike on the side. Wilson, dealing with a herniated disk in his neck, has been ruled out for Monday’s game.