Things for the offensive line somehow have managed to get worse for the NY Giants. In the Week 4 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, center John Michael Schmitz was injured on the failed tush push play on 4th down in the first quarter.
Schmitz suffered a shoulder injury and he wasn't able to practice this week. On Friday, it was announced that the 2023 second-round pick will miss the showdown with Miami. You've got to be kidding here.
Not only that, but star left tackle Andrew Thomas will miss yet another game with his hamstring injury, while guard Shane Lemieux is out with a groin issue. With all the injuries up front, there are only six healthy linemen currently on the roster. Because of that, some help via the practice squad should be on the way:
With 3 OL out, Giants only have 6 healthy OL. Expect Jalen Mayfield and Jaylon Thomas to get elevated from the P-squad, with Thomas serving as the backup C.
— Dan Duggan (@DDuggan21) October 6, 2023
McFadden's workload today wasn't encouraging. A step up from the doubtful status for Saquon, but I'm still skeptical https://t.co/nRueprnha7
Injuries continue to pile up for the NY Giants and Brian Daboll
If you're not familiar with Jalen Mayfield or Jaylon Thomas, don't feel bad even for a second. Mayfield hasn't played in a regular season game since 2021. That season, he started 16 games for the Atlanta Falcons at left guard. Meanwhile for Jaylon Thomas, he went undrafted during last spring's draft.
Jaylon Thomas was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Ravens, but he was released in late August. Not long after that, general manager Joe Schoen signed the rookie to the practice squad. Now, Jaylon Thomas could be needed in Miami this weekend.
No disrespect to Jaylon Thomas or Mayfield, but no one would have guessed for either of these guys to be on the active roster once Week 5 of the season arrived, let alone be in line for playing time in a game against Miami.
Due to injuries, though, there's a chance we could see both of these youngsters take the field on Sunday. All of the injuries continue to mount for Brian Daboll and Co., which feels like one gut punch after another.