Jason Pierre-Paul plans on reporting to Giants next week, expects to play early in season: Report

Although the New York Giants have yet to see him and only two months have passed since a fireworks accident caused severe injuries to his right hand, Jason Pierre-Paul plans on returning to the Giants next week.

And wants to play "early in the season," according to ESPN.com.

Four days after the July 4th accident, Pierre-Paul had to have his right index finger amputated due to the severity of the injury.

JPP has stayed away from the team since the horrible incident and besides a sighting in late August, his condition has been a mystery.

In the weeks following the injury, the Giants were disappointed that their star defensive end didn't reach out to them. However, the Giants defensive end finally contacted the front office in early August.

Before his injury, the Giants had hit Pierre-Paul with the team's franchise tag. And, despite the severe injury, they haven't taken JPP's one-year, $14.8 million franchise offer off the table.

It sounds like it would take a miracle for Pierre-Paul to play right away. But how can you tell if nobody has seen him?

Jason Pierre-Paul tries to duck media with really bad decoy: Report

Jason Pierre-Paul's Sunday began nicely enough after the Giants defensive end posted three tweets via his Twitter account.

He said God has bigger plans for him after his fireworks accident, and then even posted a LOL about a typo on it by blaming it on his amputated finger. But before those tweets, Pierre-Paul sent out an Instagram link that announced he and his fiancee would be hosting a back-to-school backpack and school supply giveaway at a church in Sunrise, Fla. — making it his first public appearance since the July Fourth incident.

That got every one's attention.

Media types then sped over to get a glimpse of the since reclusive JPP only to find he went to great — if not exactly well executed — planning to avoid running into the cameras.

Pierre-Paul's ruse included sending out this decoy, who is built nothing like JPP and has his left hand bandaged with what looks like toilet paper when it was his right hand which was injured.

JPP ducks media w/ TERRIBLE decoy who has wrong hand wrapped, jokes about accident on Twitter http://t.co/AocFbip1fY pic.twitter.com/4rZPnORfKf

— NY Daily News Sports (@NYDNSports) August 24, 2015

The New York Daily News wrote:

The beleaguered Giants defensive end, whose finger was reportedly amputated after a July 4 fireworks accident, tried to fool a Daily News reporter at a charity event in Sunrise, Fla. by sending out a burly decoy in a bandaged hand who was whisked away in a waiting vehicle.

But the fake football player wrapped up the wrong mitt — in toilet paper, no less — a move even Pierre-Paul's security people admitted was ill-conceived.

As the fake Pierre-Paul was coming out the front, the real one was sneaking out the back, said a security guard at the event.

A glimpse of JPP since the accident is a big deal since he's only been spotted once in over six weeks. Even the Giants have not examined the hand, or have any idea what Pierre-Paul's physical condition is.

Looks like they might want to start with a head examination.

Jason Pierre-Paul nowhere close to return six weeks after surgery: Report

It has been six weeks since Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul blew up his hand and had his right index finger amputated after a fireworks accident on July 4th.

And now, a month-and-a-half later, there is nothing to indicate that JPP is anywhere close to a return or if he is even training or rehabbing. 

There has been nothing but silence from his reps about his injuries, his healing, his plans or his training. And besides spotting a bandaged Pierre-Paul in South Florida several weeks ago, he hasn't spoken or been seen otherwise. 

According to the Giants, they still don't have any idea when he's going to return, or even if he realistically can. 

  

"Until we see him, we can't make that determination," co-owner John Mara said on WFAN earlier this week. "We've been led to believe all along by his people that he'll be able to play. But again, we'd like to have our doctors take a look at him."

Six weeks was reportedly an important milestone in Pierre-Paul's return. At six weeks the fractures in Pierre-Paul's right hand and thumb were supposed to be healed. Doctors said those parts needed the longest to heal. More so than the amputation, they were the primary complications to his return to the field.

Word was that Pierre-Paul would be returning "sooner than most people think," a person close to the Pro Bowl defensive end claimed at the time of the surgery. The player and his representatives seemed to think Week 1 was a realistic possibility.

But why haven't all of the details of the injuries been revealed by JPP's camp. There was believed to be serious damage to his hand and finger, burns and charred skin. Can't they give more specifics about some of the injuries? Was there a skin graft? And why wouldn't he let the Giants' doctors inspect them? 

It all piles up to one big question: With the Week 1 regular season opener only 25 days away, how can anyone know if Pierre-Paul could possibly return to play in an NFL game within months of such a serious injury?

Pierre-Paul has kept in touch with some teammates. He's communicated with some coaches and had conversations with general manager Jerry Reese and an annoyed Tom Coughlin.

But, as Mara has said on multiple occasions, the Giants still can't be sure how many fingers he even actually has right now.

So with the all important six weeks post-surgery timeline passing, it appears even more likely Pierre-Paul won't be suiting up.

Heavily-bandaged Jason-Pierre Paul seen for first time following fireworks accident (PHOTOS)

A day after Giants owner John Mara said that he didn't know the extent of Pierre-Paul's injuries, the New York Daily News has obtained exclusive photos of the injured defensive end and his bandaged hand — and it doesn't look good.

JPP was spotted with his arm in a sling supporting a heavily-bandaged right hand and forearm —making his hand look like a club.

This was the first public sighting of Pierre-Paul since he nearly blew off his hand in a Fourth of July fireworks incident gone wrong. He was dressed in a white shirt, black shorts and sandals as his classic car was loaded onto a flatbed truck in south Florida.

EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS: First look at Jason Pierre-Paul after fireworks incident. http://t.co/GDZFp6XjKU pic.twitter.com/QqtccAqpEv

— NY Daily News Sports (@NYDNSports) July 31, 2015

After the horrific accident, Pierre-Paul spent 10 days in a Florida hospital, where he had his right index finger amputated. Pierre-Paul’s refusal to respond to the Giants organization's inquiries into his condition and offers of medical assistance lead to all kinds of conclusions.

"We don't even know how extensive the damage is, that's the problem," said Mara on Thursday. "I don't even know how many fingers he has."

And from looking at the photos, I'm guessing they still don't know.

Tom Coughlin thinks Jason Pierre-Paul's injuries are more severe than reported

In his first public comments about Jason Pierre-Paul, New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin said he has no idea when Pierre-Paul might show up at the team's training camp, described the player's refusal to allow the team to participate in his recovery as a "fiasco," and suggested that JPP is receiving poor advice from his management.

Speaking to Sports Illustrated's MMQB.com, Coughlin said he believes the silence from Pierre-Paul makes him fear that the injury is more severe than even the gory details that have been reported.

"I don't know what they think they are hiding," Coughlin said. "It only makes us, me personally, think the worst."

It's been nearly a month since the Giants defensive end injured his right hand in a fireworks mishap on July 4. Coughlin texted him the following day, offering any assistance that he and the Giants could provide.

He has yet to hear back.

Coughlin said he first learned of the injury on July 5 from general manager Jerry Reese. That's when he sent the text to JPP that read simply: "How can I help you?" He has yet to receive a response.

"I want to help. I want to be there for him," Coughlin said. "But he's decided that he doesn't want our help. He thinks that something will come of it. But, all I care about, all any of us care about, the whole organization, is the well-being of the kid."

Coughlin is not alone in the mystery. He said that defensive line coach Robert Nunn has spoken to Pierre-Paul a few times since the accident, and others have communicated via text, but most of the conversations between JPP and those associated with the team have been vague.

"There has been very little information even to this point in time," Coughlin said. "Everybody in this building is concerned with him and his welfare. Even to the point where this fiasco, when Ronnie [Barnes] goes down there and Jessie [Armstead] goes down there, and he won't see them — these are the people he has depended on all the time he has been there. I don't know what he thought he was going to accomplish by not allowing them to be there to assist, to help, whatever needed to be done."

"I thought that was a really poor move by them, by his people," he said.

Pierre-Paul was absent from the team's spring workouts and seems to be rehabbing his hand on his own. It was expected that he would sign the one-year, $14.8-million franchise tender shortly after the mid-July deadline to reach a long-term agreement passed. He has not. And, not surprisingly, the Giants would like to assess his hand injury before any contracts are signed.

For that to happen, Pierre-Paul has to show up.

Pierre-Paul didn't attend the team's minicamp in June, as Coughlin had hoped. Now he has no idea when he'll see Pierre-Paul again.

"I don't know what to expect anymore," Coughlin said.

Giants “fully intend” to have JPP on roster in 2015: Report

The New York Giants may not have signed Jason Pierre-Paul before he had his right index finger amputated after a fireworks accident last week, but a source says that isn’t changing their plans to keep Pierre-Paul for the 2015 season.

NJ.com reports that that Giants “fully intend” to have JPP on the roster at the one-year, $14.8 million salary mandated by the franchise tag, according to the person who remains anonymous.

The Giants have the option of rescinding that tender because Pierre-Paul has yet to sign it, something that would make Pierre-Paul an unrestricted free agent and leave the Giants without their best returning player in the front seven of their defense.

It’s easy to understand why the Giants wouldn’t want to go that route at this point in the offseason, even with questions remaining about how much of an impact the loss of the finger and a surgically repaired fractured thumb will have on his play this season.

There are also questions about when he’ll be able to play with six weeks given as the timeline for recovery from the thumb injury. That would put his return toward the end of training camp and wouldn’t leave much time before the start of the regular season for a player who missed all of the Giants’ offseason work because of his contract situation.

Despite the questions surrounding JPP's physical and psychological return to form, he still remains a valuable commodity to the Giants.

James Harrison rips ESPN's Adam Schefter for posting Jason Pierre-Paul’s medical report

The status of Jason Pierre Paul’s condition after a Fourth of July fireworks accident left everyone — including the New York Giants — wondering how serious his hand injury was.

That was until ESPN obtained a copy of the defensive end's medical report and Adam Schefter posted Pierre-Paul’s medical record confirming that the defensive end had his right index finger amputated.

And the ESPN reporter not only wrote about it, he posted JPP's actual medical record on Twitter for the world to see.

ESPN obtained medical charts that show Giants DE Jason Pierre-Paul had right index finger amputated today. pic.twitter.com/VI5cbS1uCw

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 8, 2015

There was some dismay from the media and other NFL players after Schefter's post and Pittsburgh Steeler linebacker James Harrision was one of those who was angriest.

.@AdamSchefter You're a real piece of sh*t for putting that picture up!

— James Harrison (@jharrison9292) July 9, 2015

I'm going on a hunch here but I'm pretty sure that those medical docs obtain by ESPN are a violation of some sort. Not the smartest but...

— Justin Tuck (@JustinTuck) July 9, 2015

The real questions here are who the source was — which might be hard to find out — and the legality of handing out copies of personal medical records. And, now that it's out there, questions about doctor/patient confidentiality and the media are something the players have put in play.

If a medical provider leaked JPP medical information, that's a big HIPAA violation. Media like @AdamSchefter are not subject to those laws.

— David J. Chao, MD (@ProFootballDoc) July 9, 2015

Sounds like this has opened an important legal issue for the player's union.