NY Giants WR Steve Smith Injures Pectoral Muscle

New York Giants wide receiver Steve Smith injured his pectoral muscle during a team practice on Thursday. Smith was forced to leave practice due to the injury, and the WR did not speak with any media. Tom Coughlin discussed the injury following the team's practice.

"Steve Smith went for a ball today and strained - what they are calling right now - is a strained pec," Coughlin said. "He had trouble driving his arm after the injury so he couldn't continue. I don't have anything to tell you about him until they do all of the tests. It was kind of a blur for me because I didn't even realize he had done anything. And then word was that he was out of practice. He tried, I guess, to move his arms and that type of thing. And he did have some, I guess, pain up in his pec area. So we will have to wait and see."

The Star-Ledger quotes Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride as saying "We'll rotate and move guys around so that we won't pigeon-hole one guy. Depending what the route is and what we're asking them to play, we can move different people in, whether it's Mario (Manningham) or Hakeem (Nicks) or Ramses Barden or Duke Calhoun, or any of them."

WR Hakeem Nicks has emerged as a star in 2010, due largely to the fact that he's been on the field at the same time as Smith. We have yet to see how Nicks would produce with Smith on the sidelines. It's likely that anything other than a mild strain would keep Smith out of this Sunday's game against the Cowboys. A serious injury, such as a torn pectoral muscle, could end the talented receiver's season.

All Coughlin quotes via New York Giants Communications Office

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