Jon Beason did not remember his anniversary.
“I guess I am supposed to remember that, huh?” he said Thursday. “One year.”
It was almost exactly one year ago, Oct. 4, 2013, that the Giants sent a seventh-round draft pick to the Panthers in exchange for Beason, who arrived and immediately solved the problem at middle linebacker in spectacular fashion.
“We will have to celebrate then with something special,” Beason said.
Getting back on the field would qualify. Beason has missed the past two games, both victories, after aggravating the right foot and right big toe injury that kept him out all spring and summer.
He made it through this week of practice and said he expects to play Sunday against the Falcons. Returning to the field might not be the big issue with Beason.
Keeping him on the field figures to be more problematic, as his right foot basically is always sore and the situation will have to be handled delicately, most likely for the entire season, as he sorts through different shoes and orthotics to find the right combination.
“You break scar tissue,” Beason said. “We didn’t have the surgery, so the scarring was actually the repair, if that makes sense. There is pain there, but not as much pain as the first time when it was a soft tissue injury. You break the scar tissue, so now I have a lot of play in my toe. That is really what is the holdup. I need my big toe to play ball, to push off, to pivot, and you try to compensate for a lack thereof. That is really the biggest issue.”
Veteran TE Daniel Fells was surprised to hear Larry Donnell did not activate himself on his own fantasy football team last week, when he caught three touchdown passes against the Redskins.
“After Week 1 I was like, ‘You got a few catches, why not?’” Fells said. “That’s crazy to hear.”
Beason, WR Odell Beckham Jr. (hamstring), LB Devon Kennard (hamstring) and P Steve Weatherford (ankle) all practiced on a limited basis. The only one unlikely to play is Kennard.
Quintin Demps will continue to start at free safety after replacing Stevie Brown last week against Washington.
“He had some very good plays in the football game and he had some plays that we definitely have to correct him on and he has to get better at,” defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said. “But I thought he answered the bell.”
There’s even more potentially ominous injury news for the Falcons, as starting left guard Justin Blalock (back) and slot receiver Harry Douglas (foot) did not practice for a second straight day.
