Giants WR Sterling Shepard to return to practice

Shepard, who is coming off an Achilles tear sustained in December, will return to practice Wednesday, Brian Daboll said. This will mark a key checkpoint for Shepard, who can no longer be stashed on the team’s PUP list to start the season. It is not a lock Shepard returns for Week 1, but a re-emergence during the team’s September slate looks likely.

This Giants team features a glut of receivers, though it is unknown if each of their four notable veterans — Shepard, Darius Slayton, Kenny Golladay and Kadarius Toney — will be on the 53-man roster alongside second-round pick Wan’Dale Robinson. Slayton has long looked like the odd man out. As for Shepard, the team reached a restructure agreement — what amounted to a pay cut — to keep him around this year. This will be Shepard’s seventh Giants season.

The only remaining holdover from the Jerry Reese GM regime, the former second-round pick signed a four-year, $41M extension during Dave Gettleman‘s GM run. The 2019 deal has preceded modest results, with injuries — a steady theme during the talented wideout’s career — interfering regularly. This will be Shepard’s age-29 season; he is now tied to a $6.3M cap number and set for free agency in 2023.