Clint

Sintim

Sintim tore his right patellar tendon and ACL in the Giants’ preseason finale. He tore the same ACL in December 2010. Under contract for a bargain $565,000 in 2012, Sintim should make the team if he’s healthy.

Nicks has just begun running in a wading pool. Coach Tom Coughlin confirmed there have been no setbacks and Nicks is still on target for a return within the original 12-week timetable. Also placed on camp/PUP were DL Chris Canty (knee), TE Travis Beckum (knee) and LB Clint Sintim (knee).

Sintim’s blown-out right knee isn’t anywhere near full strength, and the former 45th overall pick in the draft has little roster security. “Physically, he’s being handled by our training staff, so I can’t really say where he’s going to fit in right now,” acknowledged defensive coordinator Perry Fewell.

Sintim, the No. 45 overall pick in the 2009 draft, had his career crippled by knee injuries. He tore his right ACL in December of 2010 and then tore both his ACL and patella in the 2011 preseason. Even if Sintim stuck this season, he was expected to open the year on reserve/PUP. He ends up appearing in a mere 33 games for the Giants, mostly as a special teamer.

The No. 45 overall pick of the 2009 draft, Sintim hadn’t appeared in a game since 2010 thanks to a series of serious knee injuries. He was waived before final cuts in Giants camp last summer. Sintim is still only 27 years old, but a comeback appears unlikely. He finishes his NFL career with 33 tackles in 24 games.

Sintim, the 45th overall pick, is probably not being counted on for a big role in year one. Incumbent Danny Clark will be difficult to unseat on the strong side, and Sintim is reportedly only being viewed as a “pass-rush specialist.”

The Giants turned Jeremy Shockey into Sintim, who comes out of the 3-4 scheme at Virginia. Second to only Everette Brown in the ACC in sacks last season, he is a downhill tackler who will play strong-side linebacker for the Giants and probably rush in nickel situations.

Beckum, ticketed for a third-down role behind starting TE Kevin Boss, could’ve used this time to find his niche in coordinator Kevin Gilbride’s offense. We still expect Beckum to cut heavily into Boss’ targets on passing downs.

Sintim will also be moved into a pass-rushing role on third-downs. Along with free agent acquisition Michael Boley on the weak side, the Giants have done a nice job upgrading their linebacking crew around Antonio Pierce. Danny Clark will move to a reserve role this season.

“That is not going to help him or us,” coach Tom Coughlin said. Sintim is being counted on as the strong-side linebacker, so he’ll need to be back to full speed by training camp.