Jason Pierre-Paul

In the wake of Jason Pierre-Paul‘s fireworks accident, the Giants had been expected to place their standout defensive end on the non-football injury list until he gets healthy. However, the team can’t make that move until JPP is under contract, and that isn’t the case for now. According to Ed Werder of ESPN.com (via Twitter), Pierre-Paul doesn’t intend to sign his franchise tender until he’s confident that he can pass a physical, which would prevent the team from placing him on the NFI list.

The move isn’t a surprising one, since it gives Pierre-Paul and his camp some control over the process, rather than handing the reins over to the Giants. In his examination of the situation yesterday, Jason Fitzgerald of The Sporting News observed that JPP would likely hold out until the last possible moment. After all, if he were to sign his franchise tender tomorrow, the Giants would be able to place him on the non-football injury list for the start of the season, ensuring he’d miss at least six weeks and wouldn’t be paid during his absence.

On the other hand, if he waits until after the regular season gets underway to sign the tender, JPP will miss out on game checks, but he’d have the opportunity to return prior to that six-week mark. Franchised players have until after Week 10 to sign their tenders — if they haven’t signed by then, they’re not eligible to play in the NFL for that season.

Of course, this game of tug-of-war between Pierre-Paul and the Giants depends significantly on what the 26-year-old’s recovery timetable will look like. If it turns out he’ll have a chance to be ready by the time the regular season begins, New York may not even need or want to place him on the NFI list. On the other hand, if his recovery extends well into the regular season, the Giants could ultimately decide to rescind the franchise tender, recognizing that JPP won’t contribute much this year and likely won’t be re-signed.

In other words, we’re still in wait-and-see mode when it comes to Pierre-Paul’s health and his contract. However, both sides have certain cards they can play to gain leverage in the situation. As Fitzgerald noted in his piece linked above, a prolonged holdout could fracture the relationship between JPP and the Giants, but for now it seems like the best possible approach for the defensive end.

The Giants fully intend to have Jason Pierre-Paul on their roster for the 2015 season, a person with knowledge of the situation told Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger. Pierre-Paul currently has a one-year, $14.8MM offer on the table as the Giants’ franchise player and the report seems to infer that the team will honor that offer.

Barring some unforeseen medical issues moving forward, the Giants are still committed to their 2010 first-round pick. However, one NFL executive that spoke with Raanan believes that the Giants are making a mistake.

“Send a message. Save the money,” the exec said of what he would do in this situation. “But it’s a typical case of long-term interest of team versus short-term interest of [general manager Jerry Reese and coach Tom Coughlin], who need to win games now.”

One salary cap expert echoed that sentiment, saying that he would pull the franchise tag from JPP and either replace him with someone else or use that cash to re-sign core players. Giants quarterback Eli Manning and cornerback Prince Amukamara are both entering their walk years and stand as extension candidates, particularly Manning.

Will the Giants rescind Pierre-Paul’s franchise tender? Joel Corry of CBSSports.com sees that as a very unlikely outcome if the defensive end is able to play most of the season. There is some precedent as franchise tenders have been revoked on three occasions, but JPP is the team’s only impact defensive player and they can’t really afford to be without him. If JPP’s tender is pulled off the table and he is deemed to be healthy, he could sign a lucrative deal elsewhere as an unrestricted free agent.

After initial reports suggested that Jason Pierre-Paul‘s injury wasn’t serious, word broke last night that the standout pass rusher was having his right index finger amputated. The shocking development not only complicates JPP’s expected recovery and his contract situation, but has also resulted in speculation about how confidential medical information was leaked – possibly violating HIPAA laws – to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who then published that info on Twitter.

Here are Thursday’s updates on JPP’s situation:

• It’s not clear why Pierre-Paul’s camp has kept the Giants in the dark about his health status, writes Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News. Vacchiano hears from a team source that the club never discussed the possibility of withdrawing JPP’s franchise tag, and simply wanted to assist with his recovery. “We really don’t understand why they won’t let us help him,” one club source said. “What are they trying to do?”
• Referring to Pierre-Paul’s decision to have his finger amputated, a person close to the defensive end tells Jordan Raanan of NJ.com that “it has nothing to do against the Giants.” As that source points out, JPP isn’t under contract with the team at this point, since he hasn’t signed his franchise tender. Still, it appears likely that the 26-year-old will rejoin the Giants at some point, and Raanan wonder how the relationship between the player and team will be affected going forward.
• In a separate piece at NJ.com, Raanan passes along word that Jackson Memorial Hospital has begun an “aggressive” investigation into the release of Pierre-Paul’s medical chart. “If we confirm Jackson employees or physicians violated a patient’s legal right to privacy, they will be held accountable, up to and including possible termination,” said Carlos A. Migoya, president and CEO of Jackson Health System. “We do not tolerate violations of this kind.”
• As Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link) points out, the Giants will want Pierre-Paul to attend the team’s training camp to monitor his recovery progress, whereas JPP likely won’t want to sign his tender and report to camp until he’s fully healthy. According to Cole, if New York wants to get its top pass rusher to camp, the club may have to agree not to place him on the non-football injury list.

9:46pm: In addition to his amputation/skin graft, JPP had surgery to repair a broken right thumb, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report. Echoing earlier reports, Cole also hears that JPP had the finger amputated in order to facilitate a quicker return to football.

“He was told that he could repair the finger, but it was probably going to take multiple procedures and even after all of that the finger was probably going to be disfigured and not very functional, if at all,” a source said. “Look, it’s not easy to say, ‘OK, cut it off.’ But for what he’s trying to do, play football, it makes sense.”

Two doctors also told Cole that losing the finger won’t keep him from playing effectively. However, one doctor said that extensive damage to the thumb would be even more problematic. Pierre-Paul might be able to begin exercising with the hand in as little as two weeks, although three or four may be more likely, Cole hears.

7:24pm: The current belief is that Pierre-Paul won’t require any further amputations, Garafolo tweets.

6:48pm: Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports (on Twitter) hears that there were a few options discussed to attempt to save JPP’s finger. However, amputation was deemed to have the fewest complications. A lawsuit is indeed possible for the leaking of the medical records, Mike Florio of PFT tweets.

The Giants were unaware of the amputation until reading Schefter’s report, according to Jordan Raanan of the Star-Ledger. As of this writing, JPP is still in surgery.

6:45pm: Jason Pierre-Paul had his right finger amputated today, according to documents obtained by ESPN’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). Still, JPP is expected to play this season and a medical source tells Schefter that he’ll be back on the field “sooner than people think.”

The thinking behind JPP’s decision is that cutting off his finger simplifies and accelerates his recovery, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Now, the defensive end could be back in fewer than two months. The situation is reminiscent of famed NFL safety Ronnie Lott, who had his finger amputated in order to prevent missing time in action. Rapoport (link) believes says that JPP was refusing to see people, including Giants officials, because he was having critical surgeries done on his hand.

Pierre-Paul had a strong 2014 campaign with 12.5 sacks and three forced fumbles and was the league’s seventh-best 4-3 defensive end according to Pro Football Focus’ grades (subscription required). Since the end of the season, JPP has been entangled in a contract dispute with the Giants. The Giants slapped the defensive end with a one-year, $14.813MM franchise tender to keep him, but Pierre-Paul has been fighting for a lucrative long-term deal. Big Blue came to the table with a reported ~$60MM offer, but Pierre-Paul turned it down.

In addition to turning away Giants staff members who tried to visit him in the hospital the past few days, the injured defensive end also refused the team’s offer to set him up with hand specialists in Manhattan, sources told Garafolo. Today’s new information might shed some light on JPP’s decision.

Four days after he sustained a hand injury in a fireworks accident, Jason Pierre-Paul‘s status remains something of a mystery, with no formal announcements from his camp or the Giants on his condition or his potential recovery timetable. Here are Wednesday’s latest updates on the veteran pass rusher:

• Multiple league sources tell Mike Florio of PFT that Pierre-Paul specifically declined to see trainer Ronnie Barnes and former Giants linebacker Jessie Armstead, who now works as a special assistant for the Giants. As one source explained it, they traveled to Miami without first contacting JPP or otherwise determining that he would see them. Armstead is known to have a strong relationship with Pierre-Paul and JPP’s refusal to see him could be an indication of how he feels about the organization at present.
• Giants officials who went to South Florida earlier this week to visit Pierre-Paul have now left without ever getting a chance to visit the injured defender, sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter links). While JPP received the franchise tag from the Giants, he never signed it, meaning he’s not technically under contract with the club. Per Schefter, while team officials showed up in Florida, they were “not welcomed there.”
• Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap points out (via Twitter) that since the Giants could decide to pull their franchise tag, JPP’s camp probably doesn’t want the club to see the 26-year-old until they’re more certain about his recovery.
• Giants running back Rashad Jennings tells Howie Kussoy of the New York Post that “nobody’s mad at all” at JPP for the accident, and that he and his teammates are “just hoping everything works out.”
• While JPP’s Giants teammates may not be upset about his hand injury, Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report hears that the Giants coaching staff is “absolutely apoplectic.” According to Freeman, there had already been some concerns about signing Pierre-Paul to a long-term deal with a significant amount of guaranteed money, and those concerns have only multiplied now.

4;42pm: Don’t expect Pierre-Paul to sign his franchise tag until he’s ready to play, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter) cautions. The Giants can’t place him on the Non-Football Injury list until he inks a deal. Rapoport adds (link) that the two sides haven’t ruled out JPP playing in Week 1. Of course, no one will know his timetable until more is known about his hand.

Meanwhile, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) notes that Giants officials have been in South Florida since Monday night but still have not been able to visit JPP. As for right now, they’re waiting patiently, hoping he’s alright.

3:48pm: The Coral Springs PD is no longer investigating Pierre-Paul, having determined the incident didn’t happen within their jurisdiction, reports J.P. Pelzman of The Record (all Twitter links). That doesn’t mean another police department won’t look into the incident, however. Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports tweets that once police determine where the incident occurred, they might proceed with an investigation.

2:56pm: According to Raanan, the Coral Springs Police Department in Florida has launched an investigation into the accident that injured Pierre-Paul’s hand. Depending on the the information they gather, JPP could face charges that include criminal possession of fireworks, writes Raanan, citing Coral Springs public information officer Capt. Brad McKeon.

10:30am: A handful of reports on Jason Pierre-Paul‘s condition and his contract situation surfaced on Monday, with some of those reports providing conflicting information. The severity of JPP’s hand injury, sustained over the weekend in a fireworks accident, remains unclear, and the team may or may not have withdrawn a $60MM contract offer in the wake of the incident.

Based on Monday’s reports, it seems likely that Pierre-Paul will ultimately play on a one-year deal in 2015, with a stint of the non-football injury list a possibility. It also appears unlikely that his hand will be 100% healthy anytime soon.

With that in mind, here are Tuesday’s latest updates on the star defensive end:

• The Giants sent their vice president of medical services, Ronnie Barnes, to Miami to check in on Pierre-Paul at Jackson Memorial Hospital, but he hasn’t been able to get much information about the 26-year-old’s condition, writes Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News. According to Vacchiano, the Giants have been stuck getting most of their updates from JPP’s agent, which is the main reason why the team has yet to issue a statement or make any definitive decisions. In response to a report indicating the defensive end could miss some of the regular season, one team source told Vacchiano, “Until we know what we’re dealing with, nobody knows if he’ll miss anything.”
• One team source told Vacchiano that yesterday’s report on the Giants pulling a $60MM to JPP off the table was “not accurate,” suggesting that there may not have been a concrete offer to rescind. A deal in the $60MM range may have been discussed, but some in the NFL believe Pierre-Paul was seeking more than that.
• Mark Cannizzaro of the New York Post, who first refuted the report of the rescinded contract offer, hears that there’s still a multiyear offer on the table, but that Pierre-Paul is unlikely to accept it. If that’s true, I can’t imagine that offer represents a fair market value for an injured JPP, let alone a healthy one.
• Giants officials are in Miami today to visit Pierre-Paul and hope to have a better idea of how he’s faring by the end of the day, sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Jordan Raanan of NJ.com adds (via Twitter) that the Giants’ contingent include key figures in the organization, not including owner John Mara.
• If Pierre-Paul signs his franchise tender and is placed on the non-football injury list for the start of the regular season, he’d have to sit out at least six weeks. As such, JPP’s best move may be to not sign his tender until he’s healthy, since that would allow him to be activated immediately, says Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Of course, that decision will depend heavily on the 26-year-old’s recovery timetable.
• In a piece for NJ.com, Raanan explains how the NFI list works, and how its features would apply to JPP.