Training camp has gotten off to a rough start for the New York Giants. Saturday night, things got even worse for Big Blue as first-round pick Prince Amukamara suffered a broken left foot that will require surgery and sideline him for an "undetermined" amount of time.
Amukamara, a cornerback selected 19th overall by the Giants in the 2011 NFL Draft, was participating in just his second practice after a contract holdout that saw him wind up as the final rookie to sign his NFL contract. Amukamara's injury is broken fifth metatarsal bone in his left foot. That same injury sidelined Giants' offensive tackle Will Beatty for seven weeks a season ago.
The Giants have suffered a number of setbacks throughout the early portion of training camp. There is, of course, the ongoing contract squabble with defensive end Osi Umenyiora which has resulted in Umenyiora doing no more than riding a stationary bike thus far during camp. There was Friday's news that Kevin Boss, the team's starting tight end the past three seasons, signed with Oakland as a free agent. There was Thursday night's season-ending Achilles Tendon injury to Bruce Johnson, who was competing for one of the reserve cornerback slots. There have also been the sudden retirements of offensive tackle Herman Johnson and tight end Ben Patrick. Both players were picked up and free agents shortly after training camp began, and shortly thereafter decided to leave.
On top of all of that, the Giants have watched the NFC East rival Philadelphia Eagles and the co-New Meadowlands Stadium inhabitant New York Jets make a several splashy moves.
The Eagles have added cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, defensive end Jason Babin, running back Ronnie Brown, defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins and backup quarterback Vince Young via free agency. The Jets added a pair of wide receivers, former Giant Plaxico Burress and former Baltimore Raven Derrick Mason.
The Giants were able to bring back running back Ahmad Bradshaw and defensive end/linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka . They have also made several small additions aimed at providing depth and competition. Still, this has likely not been the way the Giants hoped to begin the 2011 season.