Giants Receiver Sterling Shepard Suffers Torn ACL

The New York Giants' worst fears were confirmed Tuesday morning regarding wide receiver Sterling Shepard's left knee injury.

Head coach Brian Daboll announced that the veteran receiver suffered a torn ACL on the Giants' final offensive play during Monday Night's loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

Shepard, who was three games into a comeback from a season-ending torn Achilles from last year, was jogging along the turf when suddenly he reached down and grabbed his left knee. He fell to the turf and was quickly carted off the field, his teammates and coaches showing concern for his well-being.

John Harbaugh on the MetLife field surface after Week 1 game there: “That turf was matted down, it was packed down, it was a little tight. Maybe that’s how it’s supposed to be. I don’t know, but that’s what I saw. It was a little tough.”pic.twitter.com/Qw3V8h7im1
— Jamison Hensley (@jamisonhensley) September 27, 2022

After the game, Daboll sounded grim about Shepard's prognosis but did not make any announcements until the team's longest-tenured player underwent tests this morning.

As for where the Giants go from here, the answer is not far, as in they're going to turn to the guys they have on the roster and practice squad in hopes they step up.

"(General manager) Joe (Schoen) is always looking, but those guys right now who we have, we're gonna expect them to come out here, keep improving, work hard," Daboll said of guys like David Sills V, Richie James, Darius Slayton, and practice squad players like Kalil Pimpleton and Marcus Johnson.

"They've been picking up our stuff," Daboll said of the practice squad players. "We'll see as we go."

The Giants also have a pair of young players, Kadarius Toney and Wan'Dale Robinson, on the roster. Still, both are nursing injuries of which Dabolls said they're not entirely out of the woods yet regarding Sunday's home game against the Bears.

And then there is Kenny Golladay, who last week made headlines when he stated that he should be playing regardless. Golladay was targeted three times Monday night, coming up with zero receptions and one drop of a third-down pass after getting a boost in his playing time from the week prior.

Shepard's injury raises more questions about the suitability of the MetLife Stadium turf, which has seen its share of freaky injuries happen.

"I'm sure that throughout the season and the off-season, we'll sit down and discuss those types of things," Daboll said in response to a question about the MetLife Stadium turf.

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