New York Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard suffered what is believed to be a serious left knee injury after he underwent initial tests following Monday night’s game against the division rival Dallas Cowboys.
Shepard suffered the injury during a non-contact play in the final minutes of the Giants 23-16 loss to Dallas.
A final diagnosis will come Tuesday morning, when Shepard undergoes more tests, but the organization fears that Shepard’s season may be over.
“It’s tough. It’s a tough sport,” Giants head coach Brian Daboll said, according to ESPN’s Jordan Raanan. “Guys work their butts off to get back from injuries. This is something, if he’s out for the whole season, which we’ll probably know [Tuesday] morning … you hurt for those guys because you watch them in the rehab room, you watch them in the offseason. It’s just a shame.”
“It’s tough. I’m not even going to lie. It’s hard not to get choked up about it,” Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton said. “He’s been here since the first day I got drafted. He’s done a lot for me as a young guy. And then seeing him come off the Achilles last year and rehab all year, and how hard he fought to get back out there, it’s definitely hard to see.”
“It’s hard,” Giants running back Saquon Barkley, who is one of Shepard’s best friends on the team, said. “I would say I’m one of the biggest competitors, but when I saw Shep was down, I was like, ‘What the heck is happening?’ Obviously I realized it was a pick, but in that moment, you see him on the ground, I didn’t even want to walk over there. I dropped, said a quick prayer and … it’s tough. He’s been through a lot of injuries recently, it’s tough to come back and battle the way he has, from an Achilles, and to go down on a play like that, it’s a tough way to end an emotional game.”
Shepard, 29, leads the Giants with 154 receiving yards through three games.
“It’s tough. I’m not even going to lie. It’s hard not to get choked up about it,” Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton said. “He’s been here since the first day I got drafted. He’s done a lot for me as a young guy. And then seeing him come off the Achilles last year and rehab all year, and how hard he fought to get back out there, it’s definitely hard to see.”
Shepard has 362 career catches for 4,038 yards and 22 touchdowns.
