EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J — New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones was kept out of practice Wednesday because of a high right ankle sprain, and Coach Pat Shurmur says Eli Manning “very likely” will start Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Shurmur adds that Manning could very well be the starter for the rest of the season. The rookie Jones has been the starter since the third game of the season, which Giants won 32-31 at Tampa Bay. They beat Washington the next week and have lost eight straight games since. The first-round draft pick has completed 61 percent of his passes (228 of 370) for 2,374 yards and 18 touchdowns with 11 interceptions.
Jones stood on the sideline Wednesday wearing a boot on his right foot. Manning, the team’s starter since 2004, started for the first two games this season, completing 56 of 89 passes for 556 yards and two TDs with two interceptions.
STEELERS: Maurkice Pouncey is free to get back to work. The Pittsburgh Steelers center is also free of regrets.
“The money was worth it, trust me,” Pouncey said Wednesday after returning from a two-game suspension for kicking and punching Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett during a late-game brawl on Nov. 14.
Pouncey kicked and punched Garrett repeatedly after Garrett ripped off Pittsburgh quarterback Mason Rudolph’s helmet then hit him in the head with it in the final seconds of a 21-7 Cleveland victory. Pouncey raced to Rudolph’s defense, attacking Garrett while Garrett was being held on the ground by Steelers offensive guard David DeCastro.
The league initially hit Pouncey with a three-game ban but reduced it to two on appeal. His teammates rallied to his defense, sporting “Free Pouncey” sweatshirts before Sunday’s rematch with the Browns then stopping by his house to award him the game ball following a 20-13 victory that gave Pittsburgh’s playoff hopes a significant boost.
“I think the guys knew, my teammates know I ride with you no matter what,” Pouncey said. “A lot of great came out of it.”
COLTS: Indianapolis claimed kicker Chase McLaughlin off waivers amid Adam Vinatieri’s continuing struggles. McLaughlin, a rookie from Illinois, has appeared in four games with the Chargers and three with San Francisco this season. He’s made 13 of 17 field goals and all 15 extra points.
The 46-year-old Vinatieri, meanwhile, has had one of the worst seasons of his career. He’s missed 14 kicks – eight field goals and six extra points. And he missed three field goals in last weekend’s 31-17 loss to division rival Tennessee. The Titans blocked two kicks, returning the second 63 yards for the go-ahead touchdown with 5:02 left in the game.
49ERS: San Francisco suspended radio analyst Tim Ryan for one game for saying Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson was adept at carrying out fakes because of his “dark skin color with a dark football.”
Ryan made the comments Monday in an interview on the 49ers’ flagship radio station when describing Jackson’s ability to fake handoffs and keep the ball on runs that hurt San Francisco in a 20-17 loss to the Ravens last week.
“He’s really good at that fake, Lamar Jackson, but when you consider his dark skin color with a dark football with a dark uniform, you could not see that thing,” Ryan said on air. “I mean you literally could not see when he was in and out of the mesh point.”
Ryan issued a statement of apology through the team Wednesday
“I regret my choice of words in trying to describe the conditions of the game. Lamar Jackson is an MVP-caliber player and I respect him greatly. I want to sincerely apologize to him and anyone else I offended,” he said.
The 49ers said in a statement that they are “disappointed” in Ryan and that he won’t broadcast Sunday’s game at New Orleans.
PANTHERS: Quarterback Cam Newton will have surgery on his injured left foot next week, interim coach Perry Fewell said on Wednesday.
Newton suffered a Lisfranc injury in the preseason and started two games in the regular season before being placed on injured reserve.
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