Jason Pierre-Paul announced after the New York Giants’ last regular season game that he would require even more surgery on his right hand. He went under the knife on Monday and posted a picture of himself on Instagram from his hospital bed.
JPP captioned the photo, “Lord I absolutely believe you have the power to heal. If I can bring you more glory through healing, then that’s what I ask for.’’
Pierre-Paul explained the surgery in an interview on December 30. “The surgery is definitely going to help me a lot. I can’t grip out of my middle finger, it can’t close right now. That’s the reason why I’m in the club. Once I have my surgery I’ll be fine. I’m excited to actually get it done.”
JPP played in eight games wearing a bulky club on his right hand that many referred to as an oven mitt. In that time, he registered just one sack and no forced fumbles. His 26 tackles are about average for a defensive end and he did recover two fumbles.
His future with the Giants is up in the air as he becomes an unrestricted free agent in March. At that time, the Giants, and any other team interested in signing him, can take a thorough look at his hand. Recently, co-owner John Mara expressed interest in re-signing JPP, but price would of course be the main concern.
Sure, JPP had just one sack, but his impact on the rest of the line is what makes him vital. Let’s use Robert Ayers as an example. JPP made his debut on November 8th against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Prior to that game, Ayers had one sack on the year in his four games played. With JPP in the lineup, Ayers finished the season with 9.5 sacks.
Opposing offenses must account for Pierre-Paul and often shift protection his way opening the door for the rest of the line. Prior to the matchup with the New England Patriots, JPP’s second game back, Josh McDaniels said of him, “He’s a unique player. He’s got great length, burst… a very difficult player to block on a consistent basis… We’re going to have to go back and study some things from the past, study what we saw last week and really be conscious of him.”
JPP had no training camp, no preseason and a media circus to deal with as his offseason and still came in and had a measurable impact. He may never get back to his prime or even back to the 12.5 sacks he had in 2014, but he is a unique player. The Giants dropped from 4th in the NFL in sacks with 47 to 30th in the NFL with a measly 23. Re-signing JPP is a necessity to get the pass rush, and the entire defense, back on track.