“I feel really bad for him,” Giants coach Brian Daboll told reporters Wednesday.
Thomas, 25, is expected to be fully recovered for scheduled team activities next year, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
The trauma occurred in the third quarter of Sunday night’s 17-7 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals at MetLife Stadium. Thomas outplayed him, but limped badly as the game progressed.
“It’s not great,” he later stated about how he felt. Thomas added that he was “struggling” through the pain.
The second All-Pro of 2022 underwent checks on Monday that confirmed the severity of the trauma. Complementary reviews showed that it was essential.
Losing Thomas is a big loss for the Giants. Their offensive design has made significant strides this season closer to the years of struggles, and Thomas has been a stalwart in attack down the left. He ranks 25th among all offensive tackles this season with an 88.9% cross-ban win rate that’s closest to a stumble in Sunday night’s even game against Cincinnati’s Trey Hendrickson.
Thomas, who signed a five-year, $117 million commitment extension in late summer, ranks ninth among all offensive tackles with a 91.8% cross-ban win rate since the start of 2022.
It’s the second year in a row that Thomas will miss an extended year. He hurt a hamstring last season in Age 1 and missed seven games. The Giants’ offensive design struggled mightily without him, and his trauma appointment looking to pursue a stopped grass role early in the season was seen as a pivotal period last year.
“You can’t replace Andrew Thomas,” Daboll said Wednesday.
The third-year version of Joshua Ezeudu is perhaps the way to replace Thomas in the lineup. He was the second team’s left winger over the summer.
The Giants (2-4) even have Evan Neal as a substitute on the bench. But they have been reluctant to transfer the Rejection. 7 select in 2022 from the right perspective. Among his options are hanging Neal at the right position and moving veteran Jermaine Eluemunor from the right side to the left. Eluemunor has started seven games of his career at the left position.
