Star left tackle continuing to recover from Lisfranc surgery
Andrew Thomas, out for the season following surgery for a Lisfranc foot injury, can’t do anything about the current state of the New York Giants. The veteran left tackle believes, though, that there is a brighter future ahead.
“You always have to feel like we’re going to turn it around. If you have a negative mindset, you’ll never overcome,” he said on Thursday, the first time he has spoken to media since his Week 6 injury. “I’m trying to be as positive as I can, having this season-ending injury, but I think we have a good, collective group of some young players that can play well. It’s going to take some time, but I think we’ll get there.”
This is the second consecutive season in which Thomas, one of the team’s captains, has missed significant time to injury. He played in only 10 games in 2023. This season, the Giants have not won a game since Thomas was sidelined by his injury, suffered late in the Week 6 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.
“It was the drive we scored,” Thomas said, recalling when he was injured. “We were right in the red zone. It was just a normal down block, and I felt something go, but I just finished the game or whatever. But I knew something was wrong.”
The Giants tried to replace Thomas at left tackle with Josh Ezeudu and then Chris Hubbard before moving Jermaine Eluemunor to left tackle and putting Evan Neal at right tackle. That settled the line somewhat, but Eluemunor missed two games with a quad injury.
“It’s frustrating. Obviously, I want to be out there and help my team. I think I’m a big part of this team, and when I’m not out there, it hurts,” Thomas said. “But all I can do is just prepare every day, do everything I can to get back, and hopefully turn this thing around.”
Thomas said he is “feeling OK, relatively.” Doctors have told him that the recovery from surgery is roughly a five-month timeline. Thomas isn’t sure when he will be able to get back on the field.
“I’m not sure exactly where I’ll fall. I’m just doing everything I can to progress,” he said. “Right now, I have two more weeks, and I’m out the boot. So, for me that’s an accomplishment. Just trying to stay on path and not have any setbacks.”
Thomas had ankle issues early in his career, so the recovery process isn’t new to him.
“I’ve dealt with foot surgeries before. The biggest thing is just not rushing,” he said. “So, I think I’m going to do a good job of that, listening to the trainers. Definitely being heavier is a harder thing when it comes to those recoveries, but I’m just taking my time to get back.”
Thomas doesn’t have an answer for where things went wrong for the Giants this season.
“I mean, I’m not sure. I can’t really put my finger on one exact thing, but watching, and it’s the same as when I was playing. When you lose, it’s frustrating,” he said. “You put a lot of work into it, all the way down from the cleaning staff all the way up to the GM and head coach. Everyone is putting a lot of work in, and it’s frustrating when you don’t have the results that you want. But all you can do is go back to the drawing board.”
