Hakeem Nicks is putting together one of the worst contract runs in recent NFL history, but the Giants wide receiver hasn’t lost hope yet.
In fact, despite failing to catch a single touchdown pass in 10 games, Nicks said he isn’t even frustrated.
“Nah, man,” Nicks said Friday. “I don’t think this season’s been frustrating. It’s not over.”
That’s true, but the former No. 1 pick has just five more games — starting with Sunday night’s NFC East visit to the Redskins — to show the Giants and every other team looking for a lead receiver he’s worth the franchise-player designation or the substantial investment in free agency.
The Giants (4-7) just hope Nicks can find the end zone sometime soon after he was shut out the first 10 games and then held out by coach Tom Coughlin in last week’s loss to the Cowboys because of an abdominal issue.
Nicks was a surprise game-day scratch last Sunday against Dallas, and he explained Friday Coughlin didn’t allow him to play because Nicks hadn’t practiced enough for his coach’s liking during the week.
Coughlin didn’t even give Nicks the chance to test his condition in pregame warmups, telling him instead at the pregame breakfast he wouldn’t dress.
It was one of the Giants’ biggest games of the season, and the loss might have doomed their hopes of making the playoffs, but Nicks said Friday he has moved on.
“Obviously, I always want to play,” Nicks said. “But I’ve always got to respect Coach Coughlin, his rules and his wishes. I just tried to be positive. I still wanted to be there for my teammates on the sideline, helping out the best way I can.
“It was tough [sitting out], but the good thing about it now is, it’s in the past. You can’t dwell on it. The decision was made, and it is what it is.”
Nicks had battled a groin injury earlier in the season, leading to speculation he could be suffering from a hernia when the Giants recently changed the designation to his abdomen.
But Nicks said Friday he was worried enough about that to have it checked out, but team doctors don’t believe he is in danger of a hernia.
Nicks is listed as probable against the Redskins, and Coughlin said he has seen enough from the veteran wideout to think Nicks will be ready to go Sunday and his speed won’t be affected.
“I hope not, let’s put it that way,” Coughlin said. “We need him to be full speed, that’s for sure.”
Nicks said the Giants won’t have anything to worry about.
“I feel good,” he said. “I feel real good. And I’m going to leave it at that. I practiced all week, and I think I showed them enough in practice that everything will be good to go.”
But no amount of happy talk from Nicks can make up for his lack of production in a critical year for him, financially.
As well as being viewed as a bit injury-prone after missing three games last year, Nicks has been largely absent in crunch time this season. He’s still capable of the big play — he’s averaging a healthy 14.8 yards for his 42 receptions — but hasn’t found the end zone and seemingly has been replaced by Rueben Randle as Eli Manning’s primary receiving target alongside Victor Cruz.
Randle has six touchdown catches this year — a total that has to make Nicks envious as he approaches the final-argument stage for a big contract. But Nicks isn’t going to dwell on that, at least not publicly.
“I’ve always got to be positive in my thought process,” he said. “Any negative thinking isn’t any good to myself or the team, so I just think we’ve got to keep on pushing and give ourselves a possible chance [at the playoffs] by winning the last five games.
“So we’ve got to win these last five, then see what happens.”