In his NFL career, Texans defensive end Will Anderson has only missed games due to injuries twice: In 2023, when he suffered a high-ankle sprain against the Jets on the turf at MetLife Stadium, and in 2024, when he suffered another high-ankle sprain against the Jets on the turf at MetLife Stadium. He doesn’t think that’s a coincidence.
Asked about the use of real grass in the World Cup, both at MetLife and at the Texans’ NRG Stadium, Anderson said it’s the superior playing surface.
“Yes, most definitely. I would most definitely say grass. Grass 100 percent,” Anderson said. “I think it’s just the natural feel of grass, your feet not getting stuck in the ground like in turf. I had two high ankle sprains up in MetLife because of the turf. I think grass is just a better option.”
Still, Anderson said he hasn’t talked to the Texans about using a grass field in Houston for NFL games.
“Not really. At the end of the day, it’s up to them. They’ll figure it out. You just control what you can control. Go out there and play and do your job,” Anderson said.
The two times in his career that Anderson couldn’t do his job, artificial turf was the reason.
Giants Clips
Malik Nabers participated in individual drills during the Giants’ first practice of the summer. The wide receiver backed up what General Manager Joe Schoen said earlier Wednesday about Nabers now running, cutting and sprinting.
Schoen, though, softened his stance on Nabers’ availability for Week 1, declining to guarantee Nabers will play the season opener.
“We’ve got a really good plan for him,” Schoen said, via a transcript from the team. “The medical staff has a really good plan for him, and we’re going to always say listen to the patients. So, we’re going to see how he reacts. . . . So, as long as everything goes as planned, we’ll listen to Malik and his body and again, hopefully he’ll be ready, and we’ll see how it plays out. But no predictions right now, just because we have a long way to go, still a lot of camp.”
Nabers tore the ACL and meniscus in his right knee on Sept. 28 against the Chargers. He underwent surgery Oct. 28 but required a second surgery this offseason to remove scar tissue after experiencing stiffness.
Hall of Fame defensive end and multi-platform TV personality Michael Strahan took some criticism last month for not mentioning the connection between ALS and football in his interview with former NFL running back Chris Johnson, who disclosed that he has the disease.
Appearing on Tuesday’s edition of The Dan Patrick Show, Patrick asked Strahan if, in retrospect, Strahan believes he should have asked that question.
“Well, I had that — I actually thought about that, because I saw what every[one said], ‘Well you should have asked this, you should have asked that.’ Well, you should have got the interview. How about that?” Strahan said. “That’s one thing.”
That’s one sort of petty thing. The “get” doesn’t become a license to not get to the right questions. It also invites the question, generally speaking, as to whether an “exclusive” interview was less of a “get” and more of a “give” to someone who won’t ask the most probing and necessary questions.
“Two,” Strahan told Patrick, “two, that was Chris’s moment for Chris to share the story which Chris wanted to share. And when I got the call that Chris wanted to share that he has, you know, ALS, that was the story. It wasn’t for me to try to grandstand, which — I hate when people do this, Dan. As an interviewer, our job is [to] deliver information. I’m not trying to get a bigger name for myself by putting somebody else in an uncomfortable position. I was there as a service to Chris, for what Chris wanted people to understand and know about his life and where he was now. I was not there to make a story about myself or to get a big headline — that’s what it wasn’t about. The headlines were about Chris is where they needed to be.
“I did ask Chris about football, how the NFL has been supportive and all those things. He has twin boys who play football right now. So there are so many things that people don’t know but a few were critical of, but overall I’m very proud of what we did there at ABC in bringing that story. And I’m very proud and very happy that Chris trusted us to tell it. Because that was Chris’s story to tell. The headline’s about Chris Johnson, not about Michael Strahan. I don’t make any of these things about myself. And that was the disappointing thing for a few people who were critical of that. But if you don’t have critics that means you’re not doing a good job, too.”
Many would say that’s not how an interview should work, even on a feel-good network morning show. Certain topics are unavoidable. It’s not “grandstanding” to ask an obvious question and to trust that the subject of the interview will be able to handle it.
“Do you believe your ALS is a result of playing football?” If yes, “Would you have still played football if you knew then what you know now?” (The fact that Johnson’s sons play football makes those questions even more appropriate.)
And it’s obvious that there’s a connection between ALS and football, starting with the fact that ALS is a no-questions-asked condition that triggers payment under the NFL’s concussion settlement fund and continuing with the studies that show an increased risk of ALS for those who played in the NFL.
Here’s the other point that Strahan didn’t address. After the interview, when Strahan and his colleagues discussed the situation in the studio, the obvious connection could have, and arguably should have, been mentioned. Indeed, Strahan’s narration of the interview included the conclusion that Johnson’s diagnosis was attributed not to a family history of ALS but to the 90 percent of ALS cases that are regarded as “sporadic” with no known cause.
As noted by Brendon Kleen of Awful Announcing, the separate online story from ABC also failed to address the clear link between ALS and football.
And so, even if Strahan is disappointed by the criticism, the criticism is fair. Even if he didn’t feel comfortable in asking Johnson about the connection between ALS and football (Strahan didn’t mention to Patrick whether Johnson asked before the interview to avoid that topic), ABC could have — and absolutely should have — addressed it.
Failing to do so invites questions as to whether ABC tiptoed around the established link between ALS and football as a favor to the NFL, which now owns 10 percent of ABC’s sister company, ESPN, especially since Strahan’s defense to the criticism included a comment that he asked Johnson “how the NFL has been supportive” of him.
The Giants had a big group of players in for workouts ahead of the start of training camp and they announced the signing of two of them on Tuesday.
Defensive tackle Marlon Davidson and tight end Tyler Moore are the newest additions to the 90-man roster. The team did not need to make any corresponding moves after waiving linebacker Cam Jones and defensive lineman C.J. Ravenell over the weekend.
Davidson played one game for the Texans last season and five games for the Titans in 2023. He opened his career by appearing in 19 games for the Falcons after being drafted in the second round in 2020.
Davidson has 40 tackles, two sacks, an interception, and a fumble recovery over his 25 appearances.
The NFL’s daily transaction reports shows that Giants tight end Thomas Fidone and defensive tackle Sam Roberts have been activated after passing their physicals.
The Giants worked out 18 players on Monday, including veteran linebacker Kenneth Murray.
They are expected to sign former Iowa State tight end Tyler Moore, Mike Garafolo of NFL Media reports. Moore is an undrafted free agent who tried out with the Panthers in the spring.
Offensive tackle Jake Curhan, defensive tackle Marlon Davidson, tight end Zach Davidson, defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale, defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi, offensive tackle Luke Felix-Fualalo, defensive back Tony Grimes, quarterback Jake Haener, wide receiver Malik Heath, running back Kylin James, linebacker Chandler Martin, wide receiver Eric McAlister, defensive back Ahmaad Moses, offensive tackle Derek Simmons, tight end Scotty Washington and defensive back Sam Webb also worked out for the Giants.
Murray, 27, spent last season in Dallas after the Cowboys traded with the Titans for him. He started 16 games and finished second on the team in tackles with 81 behind rookie fifth-round pick Shemar James, who had 91. Murray also added four tackles for loss, two pass breakups, a sack and a fumble recovery.
He has remained a free agent since March.
The Giants opened up two spots on their 90-player roster ahead of training camp.
Linebacker Cam Jones and defensive lineman C.J. Ravenell were both waived.
Jones signed with the Giants in March but missed time during offseason workouts with what coach John Harbaugh described as an injury he suffered while moving boxes into his new home. Jones spent last season with the Jets, appearing in 10 games, and had played in all 17 games each of the two previous seasons with the Chiefs. He primarily plays on special teams.
Although there’s no word on any box-moving injuries, Ravenell was waived with a Non-Football Injury designation. He previously played for Harbaugh on the Ravens in 2024, and spent 2025 on the Titans.
Wide receiver Malik Nabers avoided the physically unable to perform list to open Giants training camp, but three of his teammates were less fortunate.
The team announced that defensive lineman Roy Robertson-Harris, tight end Thomas Fidone, and defensive lineman Sam Roberts were all placed on the list.
All three players can be activated at any point during camp, but it will be some time before Robertson-Harris is ready to play. He tore his Achilles during the team’s offseason program, so the move to PUP as opposed to injured reserve keeps some hope alive that he can return during the season.
Giants rookies reported to training camp on Thursday. The full squad is due to report to the Greenbrier in West Virginia on July 28.
The question remains about when Malik Nabers will return from rehab on his right knee, with the Giants hopeful he can play the season opener against the Cowboys. The Giants wide receiver, though, is expected to avoid the active/physically unable to perform list to start camp, Jordan Raanan of ESPN reports.
The Giants surely will be deliberate in Nabers’ return, but all eyes will be on him during training camp.
Nabers tore the ACL in his right knee in Week 4 against the Chargers and underwent surgery Oct. 28. He required a second surgery this offseason to remove scar tissue after Nabers experienced stiffness.
Coach John Harbaugh has said that Nabers’ knee injury was “not simple.”
The 2024 first-round pick totaled 18 receptions for 271 yards and two touchdowns last season.
Giants running back Cam Skattebo was tempting fate when he decided to do a backflip at Fanatics Fest over the weekend.
But his head coach didn’t see that action as too big of a deal, as he detailed in an interview with the Bleav in Giants podcast.
“My reaction was — I haven’t talked to him yet, I’m going to talk to him I’m sure. My reaction was this: Dude, at least stick it. I mean, land the thing if you’re going to do it, you know?” Harbaugh said with a laugh. “That was my first reaction.
“But Skat’s going to be ready to go. He’s been working super hard. He has really been training like crazy. And his mind is on camp. He’s healthy, he’s ready to roll, and I can’t wait to see him out there at practice.”
Skattebo suffered a dislocated ankle midway through last season, but should be ready to make an impact on the field in his second season. Giants rookies report to training camp on Thursday, with veterans reporting on July 28.
The NFL Players Association released its annual Rising Stars list on Tuesday and the first overall pick of this year’s draft is one of the players at the top.
Raiders quarterback Fernando Mendoza is No. 1 on the list of the 10 rookies that the NFLPA projects to be future members of the Top 50 list of licensed player product sales. There is also a list of 10 players with NFL experience who have not been on the Top 50 and it is topped by Saints quarterback Tyler Shough.
Mendoza is followed on the list by Cowboys safety Caleb Downs, Cardinals running back Jeremiyah Love, Titans wide receiver Carnell Tate, Eagles wide receiver Makai Lemon, Commanders linebacker Sonny Styles, Saints wide receiver Jordyn Tyson, Giants linebacker Arvell Reese, Ravens wide receiver Ja’Kobi Lane, and Buccaneers edge rusher Rueben Bain.
The list of veteran players also includes Bears tight end Colston Loveland, Raiders tight end Brock Bowers, Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker, Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, Cardinals tight end Trey McBride, Dolphins running back De’Von Achane, Bills running back James Cook, and Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez.
