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The New York Giants announced on Monday that offensive tackle Matt Peart suffered a torn ACL in Week 16 and has been lost for the season.
Peart, who was filling in for veteran Nate Solder (Reserve/COVID-19), took just 11 snaps against the Philadelphia Eagles before being injured. He was then replaced by Korey Cunningham.
“To see his season end the way it is with the ACL and how he was really plugging forward — one thing about Matt is he’s a really, really good team player and the guys really like him and respect the way he works and goes out there every day and prepares and challenges and competes. You hate seeing any player get hurt, you hate seeing guys who truly love the game and love their team being injured,” head coach Joe Judge told reporters.
“Obviously, he’s still developing in his position, there are a lot of things he can build on and grow on and can improve on, but his number one priority right now is just to get healthy.”
With Peart out and Solder still dealing with COVID-19, the Giants may have to adjust their offensive line again in Week 17. And although Cunningham is the favorite to start at right tackle if Solder can’t go, the team does have other options.
One mentioned by Judge is practice squad offensive lineman Isaiah Wilson, who was signed earlier this year and elevated as a COVID replacement last Sunday. However, Wilson was the only active player on the team who didn’t see any snaps.
“We’ll go through the week. I think he obviously is an option for us possibly at tackle along with some other players, but really he’s been plugging away in here and he’s made some progress. We’ve flexed him between guard and tackle through some drill and team work,” Judge said. “As we go through this week, we’ll look at a number of guys on our practice squad in terms of flexing them up as who can be that next tackle up for the game.”
Wilson, a first-round pick of the Tennessee Titans in the 2020 NFL draft, has had a plethora of issues over his first two seasons. He’s had multiple run-ins with law enforcement, was suspended by the Titans for violating team rules, traded to the Miami Dolphins and then released after just three days due to missing a pair of workouts.
None of those issues have resurfaced since Wilson joined the Giants. He’s been at all but one practice, appears to be working hard and losing weight, and has drawn rave reviews from his coaches and his teammates. And although he’s viewed more as a developmental project, Wilson may be thrust into live action out of sheer necessity.
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