Andrew Thomas on Why He Pushes Through Injuries in Lost Season

The 2023 season could not have started on a worse note for New York Giants left tackle Andrew Thomas, who, in the team's 40-0 defeat by the Dallas Cowboys in Week 1, suffered a hamstring strain early in the first quarter when he tried to chase down a blocked field goal.

Despite the injury, Thomas remained in the game, only worsening before he couldn't go any longer. He then went on to miss the next seven games while recovering, prompting some to question if he should have sat out at the first sign of trouble.

Thomas, however, insisted that if he had to do it all over again, he'd do the same thing.

"You can make assumptions or what-ifs, but my mindset is that if I can go, I'm going to try to go," he said Monday, the players' first day back from the bye. "Sometimes that may be a hindrance, but that's just the way that I play football, and I don't think that's going to change.

"Any time I get the opportunity to play, I'm going to do it. Regardless if we're 17-0 or haven't won a game, that's just the mindset. A lot of guys on the team have that mindset as well."

Coming off a 2022 campaign in which he earned All-Pro honors, Thomas is as disappointed as anyone to have missed out on much of this year.

"It's tough. You train all season to be healthy, coming off a really good year. I was trying to build on it, but injuries happen. It's part of this game. You've just got to find a way to one, stay healthy and two, recover as fast as I can if something does happen," Thomas said.

Thomas appears to be back in full swing, playing 100 percent of the snaps in three of the last four games. Coming out of the bye week, he's focused on making the most of the final five-game stretch.

"First, I would say football starts after Thanksgiving. We've got a lot of NFC opponents. You never know what could happen," Thomas said. "Outside of the playoffs, we get an opportunity to play football. This has been our dream for a long time, so any time you step on the field, you want to put your best foot forward."

New York's misfortune goes far beyond missing their best offensive lineman. In Thomas' first game back, quarterback Daniel Jones tore his ACL while attempting to escape a sack from Raiders' defensive end Maxx Crosby. Already light on offensive weapons, star running back Saquon Barkley suffered an ankle sprain in Week 2, sidelining him for the next three games.

Still, hope is alive. Third-string quarterback Tommy Devito has a passer rating of 92.4, well above Jones' 70.5. Defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence is earning every bit of his massive contract, proving to be a disruptive force against the run and the pass, currently ranked as PFF's second-best interior defensive lineman against the run (behind Quinnen Williams of the Jets) and as the top interior defensive lineman. Outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux is proving the doubters wrong, having recorded 11 sacks during the year.

Though not probable, a wild card spot is still possible. At 4-8, the Giants are "in the hunt" with a 1 percent chance of making the playoffs. New York has won its last two games. If they can keep the streak alive and win out, their postseason chances skyrocket to over 90 percent.

Unfortunately, the final five games include two matchups with the defending NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles and three other teams with better records than New York, including the red-hot Packers, whom the Giants host on Monday night.

As far as Thomas is concerned, the only thing that matters is the next opponent.

"As a team, you control your destiny as long as you go out there and do what it takes to win. So, we're just focused on getting one win at a time."