Giants right tackle Evan Neal has a fracture in his left ankle, which is why he’s having surgery, the Daily News has learned.
Neal’s Nov. 5 injury in Las Vegas initially had been diagnosed as a left ankle sprain.
GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll had expressed optimism that Neal, 23, would be able to return to games this season. He had even started working on the side of practices.
But the Giants abruptly shut Neal down and put him on injured reserve on Christmas Eve.
Daboll then announced Tuesday that the second-year lineman will need surgery and added on Wednesday that the procedure will happen “fairly soon.”
Daboll would not answer what Neal’s exact injury was on Thursday, though, saying: “I couldn’t give you the exact — it’s his ankle.
“Evan’s done everything he could possibly do but couldn’t make it here, so there’ll be stuff down the road,” Daboll said Tuesday. “But the young man’s done everything he could possibly do. Just didn’t work out.”
It’s not clear when the diagnosis of Neal’s injury changed during his rehabilitation to include a fracture between when he sprained his ankle on Nov. 5 and when the Giants shut him down on Sunday.
But it’s certainly not a positive that the former No. 7 overall pick wasn’t able to get back on the field to try and squeeze some late snaps out of a second straight disappointing year.
It’s also fair to wonder if surgery could have been avoided — or at least been done earlier — if the initial diagnosis had been different.
Schoen seemed optimistic that Neal would be back during his bye week press conference in late November.
“As soon as he’s healthy, he’s scratching and clawing to get back,” the GM said. “We are looking forward to getting him back there, but he knows there [are] some things he can do better. And that’s what we expect from him.”
Neal sprained his right ankle in Week 3 at San Francisco, played on it through Week 6 in Buffalo, then sat out for two games to heal up. That’s when he lashed out at fans over rampant criticism of his play and later apologized.
He then returned for the game in Las Vegas and played 50 snaps but hurt his left ankle during the fourth quarter of that blowout loss while taking on Raiders pass rusher Maxx Crosby. And he hasn’t played since.
Neal did not believe his previous right ankle injury had anything to do with the left ankle injury.
“No. I felt good when I came back for Las Vegas,” Neal said on Dec. 6. “I was dealing with my right ankle. I didn’t have any issue with it. It was just that one play where I got long armed and I fell, it was kind of like a freak thing. Like I fell on it, and it dorsiflexed, so I kind of feel like I had nothing to do with my right ankle, it was just unfortunate that it had to happen.”
Neal also was asked on Dec. 6 if he were confident he’d be back this season.
“Whenever that day gets here, that’s when it gets here,” Neal said. “[Heck] yeah, I want to go back out there this season, but just going to see where I’m at, see how I progress and move forward from there.”
Neal said he was doing “a lot of strengthening in my rehab, a lot of balance and a lot of treatment stuff, as well.”
“I’ve been doing some stuff on the field, just basically some light ladder drills, getting my feet up under me trying to put more weight on it, put more stress or load,” he said. “I’ll do some light sled pushes or I’ll do some slow-motion pass sets just to get my body or my ankle back used to taking on a full load.”
Neal was asked how his ankle felt when he put more of a load or weight on it.
“To be honest with you, it hurts. You know what I’m saying?” he said. “But I mean it’s football. I mean, sometimes you’ve got to play through pain. But I do want to make sure whenever I do go back out on the field, I’ll be ready. I’ll definitely have bullets in my gun to shoot with, because anybody would never want to go into a war without any bullets in their gun, and that’s where I’m at.”
With a fracture in his ankle, though, Neal now must set his sights on surgery and more rehab to prepare himself for a pivotal third NFL season.
BANKS, ROBINSON QUESTIONABLE
Giants tight end Lawrence Cager (groin) is doubtful for Sunday’s game against the L.A. Rams. Corner Deonte Banks (shoulder) and wideout Wan’Dale Robinson (quad) are questionable.
Robinson was downgraded to limited participation on Friday. Banks didn’t do much in practices, even though Daboll dialed back the sessions to minimal periods on the short week.
Rams DB Tre Tomlinson (hamstring) is out, and four Rams are questionable: OL Joe Noteboom (foot), OL Alaric Jackson (thigh), WR Puka Nacua (hip) and LB Ernest Jones (illness).
