The Giants' Injury Report Proves the 'Questionable' Tag is Completely Meaningless
Mike Garafolo reported the injury designations, noting Burns' three missed practices.
The NFL injury report has officially lost all meaning. According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, the just listed star edge rusher as questionable for Sunday's game against the , despite the fact that he hasn't practiced a single time this week.
Missing three straight days of work and calling yourself questionable to show up on Sunday is a level of delusion we should all aspire to. In the real world, that gets your keycard deactivated. In the NFL, it just means the coaching staff wants to make the opposing offensive coordinator think about it for an extra five minutes.
Burns got his left ankle rolled up late in the fourth quarter of last week's brutal 28-6 loss to the . He needed help getting off the field and has been nursing a low-ankle sprain ever since. Slapping a questionable tag on a guy who logged zero practice reps is pure sports theater.
The defensive headache does not stop there for . Starting cornerback Deonte Banks is nursing a calf issue, and safety Tyler Nubin is also carrying the questionable tag. That is a lot of secondary talent potentially wearing sweatpants this weekend.
For anyone looking at the betting lines, this defensive uncertainty is a massive red flag. If Burns cannot go, the Giants lose their best shot at pressuring the quarterback. A banged-up secondary is the absolute last thing you want behind a toothless pass rush.
The only silver lining for fans is on the offensive side of the ball. Left tackle Andrew Thomas and rookie receiver are officially good to go, meaning the offense will at least have its best protector and top weapon on the field to try and keep pace.
We will find out exactly how flexible that questionable tag really is when inactives drop 90 minutes before kickoff. Until then, assume Burns is spending his weekend resting that ankle, no matter what the official paperwork says.