Victor Cruz has not played in a football game since October 2014, and it is unclear whether that streak will continue or end when the Giants face the Dolphins in their preseason opener on Friday.
Asked whether the wide receiver was on track to participate in the game, Giants coach Ben McAdoo said he is "not going to talk much about play time."
Cruz hasn't missed a practice this training camp as he returns from a calf injury that required surgery and kept him off the field all of last season as well as a torn patellar tendon suffered in 2014.
He has, though, seen his reps dialed back a few times which the Giants say is part of his scheduled program. Whether that program includes this preseason game _ or any of them _ has not been addressed.
Cruz was preparing to play in a preseason game last summer when the calf injury first surfaced, so perhaps the Giants are spooked about getting too far ahead of themselves. Or maybe he's just not ready yet. While Cruz's participation in camp has been strong, his performance has been uneven. It is, though, improving. He made a nice catch in Monday's workout, picking a low pass from near the grass and then turning up the sideline with it.
"Victor has looked sharp," Eli Manning said. "He's making plays, getting the speed. For me the biggest difference seeing him back in April to now is just adjusting to the ball, the balls in the air. It's different when you're catching on the Jugs machine than when you're just catching balls and now, hey, you have to turn back, you're running full speed, you have to adjust, hold a defender off a little bit. Just making those tough catches and adjusting to the ball in the air are things that he's doing much better now. He just had to get some live action and is playing some football."
Whether he plays some football on Friday now becomes the big question.
