A key cog for the Giants is expected to return when New York faces off against the Redskins on Sunday. 

All signs point to tight end Evan Engram playing his first game in weeks after sustaining a hamstring injury in late November. The injury forced Engram to miss two straight games for the Giants. Engram battled his way throughout the 2018 campaign, missing five games in his sophomore year. He suffered an MCL sprain during the Giants' Week 3 matchup against the Texans that kept him out three straight games.

Now, the 24-year-old says it's important to end his tough year on a high note -- not just for himself, but for the team.

The Giants will be without two key cogs when they face off against the Bears on Sunday. 

Tight end Evan Engram will miss his second straight game, as he continues to battle a hamstring injury. He originally suffered the injury during warmups last Sunday when the Giants took on the Eagles. He stayed on the sideline dressed in full uniform, but never took a snap. 

Now, Engram will be in street clothes as the Giants continue their caution. It has been a tough sophomore campaign for No. 88, with this being his fifth game missed. He suffered an MCL sprain during the Giants' Week 3 matchup against the Texans that kept him out three straight games. 

Giants TE Evan Engram injured his hamstring during warmups prior to Sunday's game against the Eagles and is questionable to return, the team announced.

Engram's targets have been dropping over the last three weeks. He was targeted nine times against the Redskins in Week 9, five times against the 49ers in Week 10, and just twice against the Buccaneers in Week 11 -- though one of those targets resulted in a 54-yard reception.

Overall in 2018, Engram has 23 receptions for 253 yards and two touchdowns. 

When Giants WR Odell Beckham Jr. made the proclamation that Big Blue would go 8-0 to finish off the second half of the season and potentially creep their way into the playoffs, no one took it seriously. 

But the Giants are 2-0 coming off their bye week, and eyebrows are being raised as to whether the prediction will come true. 

And it isn't just Beckham that believe in it -- the rest of his teammates have the same mentality.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - A second straight win against another bad team may not be good news for anyone rooting for the Giants to land a Top 5 pick in the next NFL draft.

But it sure did feel good to everyone at the Meadowlands on Sunday afternoon.

Even though the Giants seemed to barely hang on to their 38-35 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it was still a reminder of the value of a victory. They topped 30 points for just the second time in 42 games, dating back three seasons. They got a defensive touchdown and forced the Bucs to bench their starting quarterback (although that turned out to be a not-so good thing).

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This is a terrible time for New York football, with the Giants and Jets sitting on what feels like rock bottom. They are a combined 5-14 this season, and the playoffs are already out of reach. And they are a combined 13-38 (.254) since the beginning of 2018.

But while there may not be hope at the moment for either team, there is still some talent on their two rosters. If they could only somehow combine the two, they might even have the makings of a playoff team.

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This is a terrible time for New York football, with the Giants and Jets sitting on what feels like rock bottom. They are a combined 5-14 this season, and the playoffs are already out of reach. And they are a combined 13-38 (.254) since the beginning of 2018.

But while there may not be hope at the moment for either team, there is still some talent on their two rosters. If they could only somehow combine the two, they might even have the makings of a playoff team.

Ralph Vacchiano | Facebook | Twitter | Archive

This is a terrible time for New York football, with the Giants and Jets sitting on what feels like rock bottom. They are a combined 5-14 this season, and the playoffs are already out of reach. And they are a combined 13-38 (.254) since the beginning of 2018.

But while there may not be hope at the moment for either team, there is still some talent on their two rosters. If they could only somehow combine the two, they might even have the makings of a playoff team.

Giants quarterback Eli Manning orchestrated his 36th career game-winning drive in Monday's 27-23 comeback win over the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium.

"It meams a lot," Manning said. "That's what I told the guys this week. We've worked too hard not to be rewarded with wins. ... We just weren't able to get some of the outcomes or make the plays we needed to win. Today we were able to do that."

Manning, who threw for 188 yards and three touchdowns, capped a nine-play, 75-yard, penalty-ridden drive with a go-ahead touchdown pass to Sterling Shepard in the left side of the end zone as the Giants came off the bye week and won for the first time since Week 3.

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The Giants are going to take a look at rookie quarterback Kyle Lauletta at some point this season. They may even take a look at journeyman Alex Tanney. There's nothing Eli Manning can do to stop that from happening.

But maybe he did just enough on Monday night to hold off the transition for a few more weeks.

The 37-year-old quarterback only completed 19 of 31 passes for 188 yards, but that included three touchdown passes and an impressive, game-winning touchdown drive in the final 2:46 of the game. It included a beautiful 31-yard pass to tight end Evan Engram and a perfectly placed 3-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Shepard with 53 seconds remaining to seal the Giants' 27-23 win over the San Francisco 49ers.

Things certainly are not going as intended for this Giants team that currently sits at a lowly 1-7 in their bye week. And as they sit on Sunday to reflect, there are some that need to step it up if they don't want to continue this trend in the second half. 

Of course, that could be said for the entire team. The Giants rank 27th in scoring (18.8 points per game), and they convert only 40 percent of their red zone trips into touchdowns, which is second-to-last in that category. For the defense, they sit 18th in yards allowed per game (366.4), while allowing 25.6 points per game as well. 

But there are certain Giants that should be performing better that simply haven't hit the mark. And to change the tides in East Rutherford, the Giants need them to have a better second half...

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The Giants deserve an "F" for the first half of the season, and if there was a grade lower than "F," they'd deserve that too.

Everything they did in the offseason screamed "Win now!" And they weren't shy about saying they expected to win now either.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- This would be a different story if the Giants had drafted Sam Darnold. Or even if they had drafted Josh Rosen or Josh Allen. Because if they had drafted a quarterback second overall back in April this would absolutely be the time to look to the future and bench Eli Manning.

But not when the next in line is Kyle Lauletta.

And not now.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The Giants offense is just completely non-functional. Nothing is working. It's a total disaster.

They need big changes. They need a big spark. They need something to kick this mess into gear.

Giants left tackle Nate Solder (neck) will play Monday night after being limited in practice, but right guard Patrick Omameh (knee) will not despite being listed as questionable.

The Giants have decided to bench the interior lineman and start Spencer Pulley instead, according to NJ.com.

Pulley, claimed off waivers by the Giants on Sept. 2, will likely start at center and John Greco will move to Omameh's spot at right guard. 

Picture this: Odell Beckham Jr. hits a double move, loses his defender, and runs down the sideline wide open as the ball comes soaring toward him for an easy touchdown. As the team celebrates in the end zone, a No. 4 Big Blue jersey comes running toward his new favorite receiver. Wearing the jersey is the Giants new quarterback -- Derek Carr. 

Now, this scenario wouldn't be until next season, but CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora offered a pretty intriguing prediction on the "Pick Six Podcast" on Wednesday.

With Jon Gruden and the Raiders blowing it up out in Oakland, no one on the roster is safe, not even their franchise quarterback that just signed a five-year deal before the start of the 2017 season. On the other hand, the Giants don't want to rebuild, but rather make moves to win now...

It's always a good day at practice when all 53 players are out and about, and that was the case for the Giants on Thursday. 

There were a few limited participants, though, with LT Nate Solder (neck) and DE Olivier Vernon (ribs) among them. Solder said after practice that he feels fine and should be ready to go on Monday. 

And the way head coach Pat Shurmur spoke about Vernon appears to indicate he will be full-go against the Falcons as well...

The Giants could be getting some help for their offense this week in the form of tight end Evan Engram. 

The second-year tight end sounded optimistic on Tuesday about returning to the field for Monday's game against the Falcons after missing the last three games with a knee injury he sustained Sept. 23 at Houston. 

"I feel really good," he said. "Today was a really good day. Went out there and made sure I got warm and stuff and was running around and going as fast as I can go and making all the cuts and doing everything I can do to block, so it felt good. Still got a lot of time, good amount of days until game time, so very probable and I feel really good about going into and the rest of this week."

LB Olivier Vernon was not listed on Wednesday's Giants injury report and is expected to make his season debut Thursday night against the Eagles.

Vernon, a key piece in the Big Blue defense, has been recovering from an ankle injury since the preseason. He was limited at practice on Wednesday along with K Aldrick Rosas. 

TE Evan Engram (knee) and WR Russell Shepard (neck) won't play for the Giants against the reigning Super Bowl champs.

With another Giants injury report coming out Tuesday following practice, TE Evan Engram remained under the limited participant section. But he was set to go full speed for the first time to see if he could be available Thursday night against the Eagles. 

Engram, who has been out for two games with a right MCL sprain, was looking forward to taking the field as he knew it could determine whether or not he can help his team win -- something they desperately need to stay in the NFC East hunt. 

"Today's just a big day for me practice wise," Engram said before practice. "Just going to go out there and see how I feel going full speed and getting full speed reps. Been taking it day-by-day and it's a possibility, but we'll see going forward."

Giants tight end Evan Engram "has a shot" to play in Thursday night's game against the Philadelphia Eagles, head coach Pat Shurmur told reporters on Monday.

Engram, the second-year tight end, has missed back-to-back games with a sprained right MCL. He and linebacker Olivier Vernon, who has yet to play in a game this season due to an ankle injury, were both limited in Monday's practice.

"We're still hopeful about Vernon," Shurmur said.

The New York Giants, still searching for some consistency, came up short yet again after losing 33-31 to the Carolina Panthers. If the future of their season seemed bleak following last week's brutal 33-18 loss to Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints, this week's defeat may have cemented another lost season.

To their credit, the Giants did put up a fight and had a comeback victory within grasp. But sitting at 1-4 after Graham Gano's 63-yarder at the end of regulation, you have to wonder how much fight the team has left.

Let's take a look on where it all went wrong this Sunday afternoon…

The Giants will be without LB Olivier Vernon and TE Evan Engram yet again on Sunday, but CB Eli Apple will return after he missed a pair of games.

Engram will miss a second straight game after spraining his right MCL in the Giants' Week 3 win over the Texans. Vernon, who has been hobbled by an ankle injury, has yet to play in a regular season game this season.

Apple returned as a full participant at practice this week.

WR Sterling Shepard (back), LB Connor Barwin (knee), and CB Eli Apple (groin) were all full participants for the Giants at practice on Thursday, and all look like they'll be ready when Big Blue faces the Panthers on Sunday.

Shepard had a cyst on his back removed and has missed practice on Wednesday, and Apple has missed the last two games.

DT Damon Harrison (knee) returned to practice Thursday after sitting out on Wednesday, while Olivier Vernon (ankle) was limited for the second straight day.

WR Sterling Shepard (back), DT Damon Harrison (knee), LB Connor Barwin (knee), and TE Evan Engram (knee) all missed practice for the Giants on Wednesday.

Shepard had a cyst on his back removed but is expected to be ready to play on Sunday against the Panthers.

"(Sterling Shepard) had a little thing taken off the base of his back that is just going to take him a day or so to get back from, otherwise he'll be fine," head coach Pat Shurmur said.

Ralph Vacchiano | Facebook | Twitter | Archive: A week ago they had made so much progress. Then on Sunday, the Giants stepped back into their abyss.

Now, after their disheartening 33-18 loss to the New Orleans Saints, they are 1-3 and looking at the likelihood of yet another lost season.

Here's a look at how their specific position groups played in their Week 4 loss...

Giants LB Olivier Vernon will miss another game with an ankle injury, while CB Eli Apple (groin) and TE Evan Engram (knee) will also miss Sunday's game.

Seven players in total are inactive, including WR Cody Latimer, C Evan Brown, QB Kyle Lauletta and CB Antonio Hamilton.

Engram will miss another game after suffering a knee injury during the Giants' Week 3 win over the Texans. Vernon and Apple returned to practice earlier this week.

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Odell Beckham Jr. feels he's close to that big play that's been missing so far from his comeback. Granted, he said "I always feel like I'm one play away … like at any moment in time it could go 80, it could go 60."

But this time he means it. He saw opportunities on film last week that he just missed. So did most of the rest of the Giants' offensive players. They were fired up by their performance in Houston. They feel like they're close to a real offensive explosion.

The Giants will be without LB Olivier Vernon (ankle), CB Eli Apple (groin), WR Cody Latimer (knee), RB Jonathan Stewart (foot), and TE Evan Engram (knee) on Sunday against the Saints. 

"I'm really close, but just going to keep prepping and get ready for next week," Apple said.

CB Antonio Hamilton (groin) and WR Stacy Coley (hamstring) are questionable...

Giants CB Eli Apple (groin) returned to practice on Thursday on a limited basis.

LB Olivier Vernon (ankle) practiced on a limited basis for a second straight day, while LB Connor Barwin (knee), WR Stacy Coley (hamstring), and CB Antonio Hamilton (groin) also practiced on a limited basis. 

Vernon has not played yet this season, but head coach Pat Shurmur said Wednesday that he and Apple were "coming along."

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The Giants believe in Eli Manning and they've made that clear. But he's still 37 years old, has only two years left on his contract, and there's still no obvious replacement for him on the roster. They don't seem to have a long-term plan at quarterback.

Unless that plan includes the man who currently holds the job...

With Giants TE Evan Engram expected to be out 2-4 weeks, it will be up to Rhett Ellison to pick up the slack. And head coach Pat Shurmur already knows he's up for the challenge. 

Ellison is an all-around tight end, in that he can receive and make plays as well as block efficiently no matter the play call. It's that versatility combined with his gritty personality on the field that Shurmur likes to see.

"I'm fond of Rhett, who he is as a player and as a person," Shurmur said after practice Wednesday. "He epitomizes a player that you want on your team. He's very good at what he does, he can line up anywhere, he finds a way to make plays. Some guys just have a knack for that. He finds a way to make plays. Very trustworthy and very tough, and he's wired like a football player, and that is what you're looking for."

Giants LB Olivier Vernon (ankle) returned to practice Wednesday on a limited basis.

Vernon has not played yet this season, but head coach Pat Shurmur said Wednesday that he and CB Eli Apple (who remained out due to a groin injury) were "coming along."

"They're getting better," Shurmur said. "We're hopeful. They should be out there on the field. Again, we're hopeful that they'll be back. High ankle sprain and then the groin, there's not always a timeline on those.

Giants TE Evan Engram, who suffered a sprained MCL during Sunday's game against the Texans, is not dealing with a severe sprain, a team source told SNY's Ralph Vacchiano.

Due to the non-severe nature of the sprain, the expectation is that Engram will be out about 2-4 weeks -- the normal recovery time for that injury. 

A lot will depend on how he responds to treatment and whether it gets any worse. But the Giants are hopeful, the source said, that he won't miss more than a couple of games...

Giants TE Evan Engram suffered a sprained MCL during Sunday's game against the Texans, head coach Pat Shurmur said Monday.

While running down the sideline after a catch, Engram took a low hit to his knee and somersaulted out of bounds. Though he tried walking it off, Engram eventually went to the sideline to get checked out instead. 

Being listed week to week as of now, Shurmur noted "we're waiting to see how extensive it might be." SNY's Ralph Vacchiano said that the Giants do expect him to miss at least a couple games. It will all depend on the severity of Engram's sprain, and how he responds to treatment moving forward...

Giants TE Evan Engram left Sunday's game against the Texans with a knee injury and will miss the rest of the game.

Engram appeared to have injured his knee when he was hit after hauling in a first down pass from Eli Manning in the second quarter. His 19-yard reception was his only catch of the game.

Engram has caught nine passes for 85 yards and one touchdown this season for the Giants.

Giants LB Olivier Vernon (ankle), who has missed the first two games of the season, has still not returned to practice. And it appears highly unlikely he'll be able to play on Sunday against the Texans. 

Head coach Pat Shurmur said late last week that the Giants were hopeful Vernon would be able to return for Week 3, but he has not made any meaningful progress. 

CB Eli Apple (groin) also missed practice Thursday, while LB Connor Barwin (knee) and TE Evan Engram (ankle) were limited.

Many have given their case as to where the blame should be placed for the Giants' 0-2 start to the season. The offensive line's shaky play seems to be at the top, with head coach Pat Shurmur taking a brunt of the backlash as well. 

And then there's the play of 37-year-old QB Eli Manning that is in the spotlight as well. Former Jet and current ESPN Damien Woody is on that bandwagon. 

Appearing on ESPN's "Get Up" morning show on Wednesday, Woody ripped Manning's level of play, and basically said he's finished after just two weeks into the new season...

Many have given their case as to where the blame should be placed for the Giants' 0-2 start to the season. The offensive line's shaky play seems to be at the top, with head coach Pat Shurmur taking a brunt of the backlash as well. 

And then there's the play of 37-year-old QB Eli Manning that is in the spotlight as well. Former Jet and current ESPN Damien Woody is on that bandwagon. 

Appearing on ESPN's "Get Up" morning show on Wednesday, Woody ripped Manning's level of play, and basically said he's finished after just two weeks into the new season...

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The Giants are a team in crisis at 0-2 after a miserable, 20-13 loss in Dallas on Sunday night. And they're back to their same old offensive problems.

Here's a look at how their specific position groups played on Sunday night...

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The Giants were so sure that a healthy Odell Beckham Jr., a rebuilt offensive line and the addition of Saquon Barkley would be enough to wake them out of their years-long offensive nightmare.

Two games into the season, it looks like they may have been wrong. Really wrong.

Their offense was absolutely pathetic on Sunday night in a 20-13 loss to the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. They barely got anything going either on the ground or in the air. They hardly even threatened to score any points until the game was basically over. And if it weren't for Barkley (14 catches for 80 yards, 11 rushes for 28 yards), they would've spent the game looking like they were standing still.

The Giants started the season 0-2 for the second straight season with a 20-13 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday at AT&T Stadium.

New York was outgained 299-254 as Odell Beckham Jr. was held to four catches for 50 yards and the team was limited to just 35 yards on the ground.

Eli Manning was sacked six times for 59 yards and lost a fumble, while Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott threw for 160 yards and a touchdown and ran for 46 yards.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Saquon Barkley's debut didn't get off to a flying start. On his first two NFL carries, he couldn't even break the line of scrimmage. He did nothing of note in the first half at all.

Yet somehow there was a feeling that something was different. Somehow, watching Barkley, everyone knew.

"I mean, I knew right away," said Jaguars defensive end Calais Campbell, who helped tackle Barkley for no gain on the rookie's first run. "The first run and the first couple of times I tackled him, I said, 'This kid has something.'"

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The Giants have a $95 million wide receiver, a running back they took second overall in the NFL draft and a franchise quarterback they believe can still play for "years." They also have a tight end they took in the first round a year ago and another receiver they took in the second round in 2016.

Those are a lot of talented weapons they've invested in heavily.

And once again, it looks like any potential they have is going to be crushed behind a crumbling offensive line.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The Giants spent the summer dreaming about what a healthy Odell Beckham could do for their offense when paired with Saquon Barkley and Evan Engram and Sterling Shepard and a revived Eli Manning.

But it looks like the fix to their offensive problems isn't going to be as quick as they hoped.

The Giants' offense was surprisingly ugly in its debut under new coach Pat Shurmur on Sunday.

Giants TE Evan Engram left Friday night's game against the Jets with a concussion and TE Rhett Ellison was forced out due to an eye injury.

Engram appeared to have suffeed a concussion on a play when he caught a pass from QB Eli Manning, but fumbled after he was hit by two Jets defenders. He was able to walk off the field on his own power.

Ellison suffered an eye injury and is questionable to return.

The Giants released their unofficial depth chart on Monday, and though it isn't set in stone, there are a few things worth noting. 

Here are the five biggest takeaways from how this roster looks early on in training camp...

1) No surprise Saquon Barkley is lead running back

The Giants' offense is already generating tons of buzz with the overload of weapons available on the depth chart. And for other teams around the league, fear is starting to set in. 

Led by star WR Odell Beckham Jr., the Giants possess above-average player at every position. Along with Beckham, Sterling Shepard will be another option in the receiving corps. At tight end, Evan Engram burst onto the scene last year as a pass-catching threat as well as one of Eli Manning's top end zone targets. And to round it all up, we all know what rookie RB Saquon Barkley is expected to bring to the table.

Looking at all of these options to work with, one AFC scout wouldn't want any defense to have to defend this group. So what should teams do?

Giants TE Evan Engram noticed the progress he made during his rookie season and spent the off-season working to improve even more under a new head coach and an improved offense.

Engram said the game slowed down for him this off-season as he looked back at his 2017 campaign.

"Things like getting open, getting back on the blocks -- everything kind of just slowed down and allowed me to get better at certain things, and then apply them on the field with the talent we have together as a team this offseason," Engram said.