NY Giants LT Andrew Thomas, RB Eric Gray Placed on Active/PUP

New York Giants left tackle Andrew Thomas, who is recovering from season-ending lis franc surgery, will start the 2025 training camp on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.

Thomas was held out of the spring practices, rarely seen on the practice field during those times when the media was allowed in the building.

Earlier this month, Thomas offered a little bit of hope that he’d be ready for camp when he made a guest appearance at a New York Yankees game to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.

However, the Giants, who have been known to be extra cautious with their players, are looking to give Thomas as much extra time as possible to ensure that his foot is indeed 100% healthy. 

The Giants need Thomas, who raised some concern when he expressed hope of being ready for Week 1, but wouldn’t commit, for the coming season.

The team struggled badly without him last year. In 2024, with Thomas in the lineup, the Giants averaged 4.8 yards per play, 105.8 rushing yards/game, 213.5 passing yards per game, and allowed sacks at a 6.4% rate per attempt.

Without him, the Giants averaged 4.7 yards per play, 67.5 rushing yards per game, 114.5 passing yards per play, and had a sack percentage of 9.2% per pass attempt.  

The Giants may simply be trying to buy more time for Thomas to ensure that his foot is truly 100%. 

Given that these first few days of training camp are padless practices and that players placed on the PUP list can be removed at any time during training camp (hence why they count against the 90-man roster), there is no reason to panic–yet–about Thomas opening up on the PUP list.

In the interim, James Hudson III, who took most of his snaps at left tackle, will presumably continue in that role with the first-team offense. However, we could also see Stone Forsythe and Joshua Ezeudu get snaps, while Thomas is sidelined.

However, this situation does bear watching for if Thomas can’t get on the field until later in the summer, if at all, the it’s certainty fair to wonder if he’ll be ready for the start of what is largely considered a critical regular season for not just the team, but an offensive line unit that already is a bit of a concern.

Other Injury Updates

Running back Eric Gray, who already was facing an uphill battle to make the Giants' roster, also landed on the active/PUP list. It's not known what his ailment is, but he did miss practices in the spring.

Outside linebacker Victor Dimukeje, who suffered a torn pectoral muscle back in May, was placed on the Non-football Injury List (NFI).

Dimukeje also had an uphill battle to make the 53-man roster before his injury occurred, but with him likely to sit on PUP even after the season starts, he can now see how the season unfolds and if an opportunity to contribute arises.

Safety Anthony Johnson, Jr., who had a shoulder issue that kept him out of spring practices, was waived with a gfailed phsycail designation. Johnson's departure opens a roster spot for K'Von Wallace, who was signed earlier in the day.

Rules of PUP

A player who lands on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list has not passed his training camp physical. For the sake of his roster status, the player is counted as “active,” meaning he counts against the 90-man training camp roster limit.

A player placed on PUP can come off it at any time during the summer once he’s able to pass a physical. If he does not come off PUP by the time the final roster cuts are made, the player’s status changes to “Inactive PUP,” meaning he doesn’t count against the 53-man roster, but he also isn’t eligible to come off PUP for a minimum of six weeks.

One final and important note: Players who pass their physicals and then get injured during camp cannot be placed on PUP. They either get waived/injured and land on IR, or the team will ride out the injury if it’s thought to be a short-term issue.