New York Giants Official Website

DECEMBER 30, 2009

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - Osi Umenyiora said today he loves the Giants but not the role he has played for the last month.

Speaking publicly for the first time since he seemed to question his future with the team in brief comments following the loss Sunday to Carolina, Umenyiora said he still bleeds Giants blue and wants to remain with the team.

"Of course, I love this team," Umenyiora said after the Giants held their first practice in preparation for their season finale Sunday in Minnesota. "I spent the last seven years of my life here. I have a bunch of great friends here, I would love to be here."
 
But Umenyiora's comments carry a caveat. He wants to be a fulltime player. Umenyiora, as well as tackle Fred Robbins and middle linebacker Chase Blackburn, were removed from the first team after the Giants' loss to Denver on Thanksgiving night. Since then, the two-time Pro Bowler has primarily been used as a situational pass rusher.

"The situation cannot continue the way it is," Umenyiora said. "I think definitely some things are going to be changed. But I love this place, I love this organization, the front office, and the coaches. I am all in, but I think I am too good of a player for this kind of situation."

Umenyiora's irritation crested on Sunday, when he played sparingly because the Panthers ran the ball 46 times. Standing at his locker after the game Umenyiora said, "What did I play, five snaps today? It was an unbelievable situation. Last game at Giants Stadium, probably as a Giant, just the way everything unfolded has been unbelievable."

The next day, Coach Tom Coughlin suggested Umenyiora spoke out of frustration and stressed that the defensive end, who has a team-high 7.0 sacks this season, is part of the team's future plans. Umenyiora did not disagree with that today.

"It was frustration man, definitely a whole lot of frustration," Umenyiora said. "Given the fact that it was the last game at Giants Stadium, with all the things our predecessors have done there and all the things we have done there as a team and all the things that I think I have done as a player, to see the team play like that, especially on defense, and not being able to help them or play as much as I would have liked definitely made me angry and frustrated. I came in and just reacted without much thought. But it is what it is and we'll move past from that and go one from here."

Though he was contrite in one sentence, Umenyiora was defiant in another.

"I think it's a situation that can be rectified," he said, "but for me personally, I feel that not playing on first and second down and making the amount of money that I am making and then just coming in on third down and being chip blocked 90 percent of the time - I just don't think they can continue to pay me just to do that.

"I am not a third down player, I am not a third down rusher. I can play the run and I have played the run this year. I think I had a bad game against Denver, a bad quarter, against Denver and things kind of snowballed from there, but in actuality, who on this team has played excellent every single game? Things happen, so I cannot take that away from myself because I am only in on third down and people say I can't play the run. That's absolute B.S because I can and the film is there to prove it."

After missing the entire 2008 season after undergoing knee surgery, Umenyiora has had a tumultuous 2009. He walked out of a meeting and missed a practice in August, when it was speculated he did not see eye-to-eye with new defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan, which both men denied. Umenyiora today called Sheridan "a good man."

When he did not start against Dallas on Dec. 6, it was the first time since 2004 he entered a game as a reserve.

"I wouldn't say I was singled out, but I think things needed to be changed at that point in time," Umenyiora said. "They needed to shake some things up, because we obviously couldn't continue going the way we were going. Myself, Fred and Chase were the people who obviously took the fall for that. But it is what it is. I'm going to keep my head up and I am just going to keep going."

Umenyiora is concerned that he will be perceived as a malcontent.

"That is not in my character to behave that way," he said. "A couple of things that I said and did are not the way I represent myself at all. Given the frustration of the moment, I think I reacted. It's not something that I plan on doing again or I don't think or I hope not. I am just not that type of person and everybody who knows me knows that. At the end of the day I am still a man of great pride and I am very much respected by a lot of people in the NFL and they know what type of player and person I am. So I can't settle for anything less, and I can't settle for not being or playing because it's just not right."

Umenyiora was answering questions posed to him by reporters. He tried more than once to deflect the focus toward the Vikings game, with little success.

"We have to focus on Minnesota right now," he said, "and as soon as we are done with the Minnesota game all that stuff, I promise you, will take care of itself and we will go from there."

NOTES

*Brandon Jacobs will undergo arthroscopic knee surgery next week and will not play in the season finale Sunday in Minnesota.

Coughlin said Jacobs "has always had some issues that he's had to deal with" regarding his knee, but an examination yesterday revealed a scope was necessary. Coughlin said he hoped the scope would prevent the issue from becoming a long-term problem.

Jacobs played in 15 games this season, his highest total since becoming the Giants' No. 1 back in 2007. But his team-high 835 rushing yards were far lower than his 2007 and 2008 totals of 1,009 and 1,089. Jacobs averaged 3.7 yards on his 224 carries after averaging 5.0 yards in each of the previous two seasons. Was that because of his knee?

"He wouldn't use it as an excuse and I won't, either," Coughlin said.

Unless Ahmad Bradshaw rushes for 235 yards on Sunday, the Giants' streak of consecutive seasons with a 1,000-yard rusher will end at seven. The San Diego Chargers, who are tied with the Giants for the NFL's longest active streak, also will not have a 1,000-yard rusher this season. LaDainian Tomlinson leads the Chargers with 729 yards entering their finale vs. Washington.

Ahmad Bradshaw, Gartrell Johnson and D.J. Ware will likely share the workload in Jacobs' absence.

*Chris Canty's hard-luck first season with the Giants continued in practice today when he sprained his knee on the next-to-last defensive snap. Canty missed most of training camp with an injured hamstring and seven games with a calf strain.

Guard Rich Seubert, who missed the Carolina game with a knee injury, returned to practice on limited basis. Also limited were wide receiver Hakeem Nicks (hamstring) and defensive tackle Fred Robbins (lower leg).

Five players did not practice: Bradshaw (ankles and foot), tackle Kareem McKenzie (knee), defensive backs Corey Webster (knee) and Aaron Ross (hamstring) and wide receiver Mario Manningham (shoulder).

*Steve Smith (7), Nicks (6), Manningham (5) and Kevin Boss (5) all have at least five touchdown receptions. This is the first time the Giants have had four different receivers with at least five touchdown catches apiece since 1963, when five players reached that total: Del Shofner (9), Frank Gifford (7), Joe Morrison (7), Joe Walton (6) and Phil King (5).
 
*The Giants are 24-14 in regular season games in domed stadiums, including 6-2 under Coughlin and 4-2 in the Metrodome. They won seven consecutive indoor games, including Super Bowl XLII, before losing at Minnesota last season. The Giants lost their only other dome game this season, at New Orleans on Oct. 18.