True Blue

Tolson gone

Just four days after signing with the Giants, Army punter Owen Tolson was waived Monday as the team rearranged the bottom of its roster following the weekend rookie minicamp.

Tolson was a victim in part of the solid 80-man camp roster limit. In the past teams were permitted extra roster spots coinciding with the number of players they allotted to NFL Europe. But those exemptions went out the door when the spring league folded.

Tom Coughlin talked Saturday about how the 80-man limit was a real squeeze on the roster, and while he would like to have brought a second punter to camp didn't know if he would be able to do so under the tighter limits.

"I am telling you it is a squeeze, we will all do what we have to do, but that is a big change for us," he said. "I would like to have 90."

Coughlin also decided to sign one of the two free-agent long-snappers he brought to the rookie camp, first-year man Nick Leeson of Virginia Tech. The Giants saved a roster spot last year by having DT Jay Alford and LB Zak DeOssie do the snapping, but may need to have a snapping specialist again this season as Alford and DeOssie grow into their defensive roles.

Other moves on Monday:

Signed were OT Jacob Hobbs of Albany, the first player the Giants have added from their training camp home; DTs Nate Robinson of Akron and Brian Soi of Utah State; DE Alex Morrow of USC; and DBs Miguel Scott of North Carolina State and Terrance Stringer of Tuskegee. Hobbs was in he Eagles camp last summer while Soi was with Miami and Leeson with Baltimore in training camp.

Waived were LB Rory Johnson and DT Joshua Muse.

The moves leave the Giants with exactly 80 signed players. That Means someone will have to but cut each time one of the seven draft picks signs his contract.

Three stars

Since players are not in pads, minicamps pretty much are geared towards showcasing wide receivers and cornerbacks. With that in mind here are the three stars from the Giants rookie camp which concluded Saturday afternoon.

1. WR D.J. Hall - The free agent from Alabama dropped one or two but made the best catches of the camp. He will contest for a spot at what might be the deepest area of the Giants roster.

2. CB Terrell Thomas - The second-round draft pick from USC stayed with his receivers and broke up a couple of passes.

3. WR Willie Idelette _ The first-year tryout player from Wake Forest caught the ball well and fielded punts cleanly.

Honorable mention: QB Willie Copeland - The southpaw's left arm must have been hanging down to his toes after taking every throw  for most of the Saturday morning and all of the Saturday afternoon workouts.

That's because QB Andre Woodson (thigh) did not practice in the afternoon. Neither did WR Mario Manningham (hip flexor).

The Giants will sign a few of the tryout players and announce them on Monday. The rookies will be able to report fulltime at the end of the week.

 

Soft tissue issues

Tom Coughlin said his rookies have suffered four soft tissue injuries in three practices. Two of those inflicted Saturday morning were third-round choice WR Mario Manningham and sixth-round choice QB Andre Woodson.

Manningham suffered a hip flexor while coming out of his cut on a pass pattern while Woodson suffered a thigh strain while running out of the pocket. Neither returned to the AM workout and Woodson said he would be out for the afternoon practice.

"These are twist-and-turn situations, which is what this game is all about," Coughlin said of the injuries. "The main lesson today is you can't miss practices and still make a team in the NFL."

That's what Coughlin told his young players after the workout.

Meanwhile offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride could almost close up shop since both of the draft choices on his side of the ball were sidelined. "Obviously we're disappointed because those guys need every rep they can get so they will be ready when they start practicing with the regulars," said Gilbride.

Add the offensive coordinator to the list of those who have talked with TE Jeremy Shockey. "I spoke to him in essence to tell him I hope he comes back," Gilbride said. "I told him I feel we are a better team with him. I just wanted him to know the way I felt."

Gilbride said he did not want to betray Shockey's confidence by repeating the tight end's half of the conversation.

Afternoon workout

The rookies did a little better in the afternoon practice as they settled into their new situation.

Second-round pick CB Terrell Thomas and third-round pick WR Mario Manningham split on two head-to-head battles. Thomas broke up a deep pass from Andre Woodson intended for Manningham, but the Michigan receiver came back and took a contested hook pattern away from Thomas.

Kenny Phillips had his first interception on a deflected pass off the hands of some tight end from Syracuse.

WR D.J. Hall, who had a decent morning workout, did well in the afternoon, too, and caught a bomb from Woodson over some little cornerback from Akron.

Two players, TE Eric Butler from Mississippi State and OL Carnell Stewart from LSU, flunked their physicals and were released.

Jeremy Young, who was a quarterback in the morning, was a wide receiver in the afternoon.

RB Jerome Messam, a huge dude from Canada who almost attended Rutgers, suffered a leg injury while trying to catch a pass.

Among the tryouts are two long-snappers, Tim Bugg of Indiana and Nick Leeson of Virginia Tech. The Giants were the only team in the league not to have a snapping specialist last year as DT Jay Alford and LB Zak DeOssie split the chores.

Strahan, Coughlin meet

Michael Strahan showed up at Giants Stadium Thursday to do some conditioning, and while there met with coach Tom Coughlin to discuss the more-than$4-million question: Will he be back for another season?

Coughlin's take was pretty much the same as everyone else's: Strahan has yet to make that final decision.

"His term for it is whatever decision I make I know I'm not going to change my mind," Coughlin said. "So I want to be right."

Coughlin said Strahan did not set any timetable for that decision, which someone close to the defensive end said may not come for awhile yet.

As for the rookie minicamp, the first practice was as expected quite shoddy, particularly on offense where there are just two drafted players, QB Andre Woodson and WR Mario Manningham.

If there was a star he was free agent wide receiver D.J. Hall, who caught the ball well and made one deep grab on a pass from Woodson. Drafted LBs Bryan Kehl and Jonathan Goff each had an interception off Woodson, with Kehl's coming off a deflection by first-year CB Darren Barnett.

Army punter signs

The Giants rookie minicamp, which begins  Friday, will include punter/kicker Owen Tolson of Army, whose signing was announced Thursday.

Tolson played his college football at Army, but unlike past West Point football hopefuls, will not have to wait to begin his NFL career. The U.S. Military Academy this year implemented an alternative service program to allow its top football players to move right into the pros.

The gist of the program is this: The player still will owe two years of active service in the Army, but during that time will be allowed to play his sport while being assigned to recruiting stations. If he remains in professional sports following those two years, he will have the option of exchanging the remaining three years of his active-duty commitment for six years of reserve time.

Safety Caleb Campbell, drafted in the seventh round by Detroit, and fullback Mike Viti, signed as a free agent by Buffalo, also can benefit from the program which is not available at either the Naval or Air Force Academies.

At Army he averaged 42.6 yards on 181 kicks, with 60 punts inside the 20-yard line and a net average of 35.3 yards. As a senior, he made eight of 15 field goal attempts, including a 45-yarder, and had eight touchbacks on 40 kickoffs while ranking seventh in the nation with a 44.97-yard punting average.

21

Tiki Barber's No. 21 has been assigned to No. 1 draft pick Kenny Phillips, according to the roster on Giants.com.

The No. 53 which once was worn by Hall of Famer Harry Carson now goes to LB Bryan Kehl.

Mario Manningham gets No. 82, Terrell Thomas No. 30, and Andre Woodson No. 3.

Shock talk

That's all it is, talk, so take it for what it's worth.

First of all Shockey has been hearing from his old buddy, Jonathan Vilma, how great it would be for them to hook up again in New Orleans. That coupled with his knowledge of Saints coach Sean Payton and his penchant for throwing to the tight end has him interested.

On the other hand...

A source who has proved himself reputable insists enough Giants have talked to Shockey and convinced him to stay. Now there's no question the feeling in that locker room is for the tight end to remain. That garbage about the Giants being a better team without him is just that, garbage.

So if Shockey drops his "Get me outta here!" stance there is less reason to trade him, not that there was much reason in the first place.

Also, Brandon Jacobs has been hinting at hitting it big financially in his next contract. The running back is in the final year of his rookie deal and could become a free agent at year's end.

Some of the reasons the Giants wanted to hold onto Danny Ware at RB is the uncertainty about Jacobs' future and, of course, Derrick Ward's injury history.

Now, however, the Giants reportedly are preparing a deal to try to get Jacobs signed before the start of training camp. Just stayed tuned on that one.

Diehl extended

David Diehl actually signed his contract extension April 21 after three weeks of negotiations. But he kept silent about the deal, even when asked point-blank if anything was going on.

The interesting part of the six-year, $31 million contract is the escalator clauses that increase his salary as long as he plays left tackle. With Chris Snee looking for big money entering his contract year, Diehl may someday be asked to move back inside to right guard, especially if Guy Whimper shows he can handle the left tackle position. So the Giants have protected themselves from having to pay a right guard left tackle money.

Old friends?

Lawrence Tynes says he has met President Bush, several times in fact.

Bush showed up at the Chiefs training camp in River Falls, Wisc., not once but twice when Tynes was with Kansas City. "I don't know why," Tynes said, but added the second visit in 2004 was during his re-election run.

So Tynes is looking to rekindling the "friendship" (he remember Bush, doubts Bush remembers him) Wednesday when the President greets the Super Bowl XLII champions on the South Lawn of the White House. But he also is looking forward to the team's side-trip to Walter Reed Army Medical Center to visit with some of the wounded troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I really want to shake hands with those guys," he said.

He wants to see the inside of the White House, where the President's desk is, where he makes his phone calls, what magazines are on his desk. "Pottery Barn?" he wondered.

Tynes said he has a picture taken with Bush from one of the Wisconsin visits. "He spoke to us for a few minutes and then threw around the football," Tynes said. "There were plenty of Secret Service agents around. You had to keep your hands out of your pockets. And you wanted to keep your distance, no hugging."

Eli Manning said he met Bush a few weeks ago as part of the National President's Challenge for physical fitness, which he is heading up. "He's a nice guy, easy to talk with, not intimidating at all," Manning said.

Safety James Butler says he'd like to ask the President one question: "What about these gas prices?" He knows he won't get an answer, much less the chance to even ask the question.

The Giants will head to Washington by train Wednesday morning in two groups. One will head to Walter Reed while the other will go straight to Union Station. They will return right after the ceremony scheduled to begin at 3:20 p.m.

Clearing it up: The Giants, not the Redskins, have signed free agent defensive end Wallace Gilberry from Alabama. There is some discrepancies in internet reports. And while the Giants have not announced the signing it has occurred, trust me.