When you serve as a backup for any position in the NFL, preseason games are the prime opportunity to step up and prove your worth. Unfortunately for Giants backup quarterback Jim Sorgi, an injured shoulder has impeded that opportunity, and he could be cut from the roster as a result.
Sorgi, who injured his shoulder in the Giants first preseason game on Aug. 16, was signed by the Giants back in May. When they signed the six-year veteran from the Indianapolis Colts, his nagging shoulder injury was in issue. When team doctors told Sorgi he should get surgery to repair the partially torn labrum in his throwing arm, he said he could play through it. Now he's eating his words.
The Giants signed Sorgi as the primary backup for starter Eli Manning, who also went down during the preseason game against the Jets. When Manning went down and Sorgi came in, a hit from Jets linebacker Lance Laury in the fourth quarter forced him back on the sidelines. An MRI later showed that Sorgi suffered a torn capsule and partial dislocation in the hit.
With the injury forcing him to miss the final week of practice, Sorgi is starting to worry about the team's final cuts coming up on Saturday. With the missed opportunity to prove himself during the preseason added to the uncertainty of a return date, Sorgi is clinging to the hope that the Giants' administration has faith in him.
"I don't know if their patience is wearing thin. I'm sure it is," Sorgi said Monday, according to the New York Daily News. "It's just a numbers game. It's getting to be that point. It's a tough position for me to be in, a tough position for them to be in."
The Giants would be taking a huge risk if they decided to keep Sorgi on the roster. The quarterback has said he's felt little improvement in his shoulder, and he could require surgery if it does not heal itself in four to six weeks. However, he says there's always hope.
"I don't want to speculate on how long it's going to be," Sorgi said. "I'm trying to take it one day at a time. I'm happy the team has been this patient with me. Hopefully they can be a little more patient and wait until I get better."
Choosing to drop Sorgi doesn't hold much weight either. The Giants' third backup, Rhett Bomar, has had a decent preseason, but his lack of experience doesn't give the team a great option if Manning goes down. Searching the waivers for talent is another questionable route, as veteran talent at the quarterback position is a scarce commodity.
Though he hopes to return any day now, the days are slipping away, and the injury is not improving. It seems Jim Sorgi will play the waiting game until Saturday, when the Giants decide his fate.
