New York Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora underwent arthroscopic surgery on his troublesome right knee Friday morning according to the team. "It's a simple debridement," said Ronnie Barnes, the team's vice president of medical services. Barnes said Umenyiora's recovery time is expected to be approximately three to four weeks, but a person close to Umenyiora told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter that "it could be four to six weeks or longer." Giants head coach Tom Coughlin did not rule Umenyiora out for the season opener against Washington on Sept. 11. The coach said it was "no surprise" that Umenyiora needed surgery. "Hopefully, it'll take less time than the other range and we'll get him back as fast as we can," Coughlin said. The hope was that Umenyiora could manage the injury and perhaps practice every other day if needed, but Umenyiora experienced swelling in his knee after practicing for three days. "It was better to do it now as opposed to midseason," the defensive end said through the team. "It was going to have to be done, the only question was when. If I'm going to miss a little while, I would prefer it be now than at the crucial part of our season. It's the best decision for the team and myself." "Osi called me at the end of the day yesterday to let me know that he wanted to have the surgery now," Giants general manager Jerry Reese said Friday. "After practicing for three days he had some swelling in the knee, and it was clear that we were going to have to adjust his practice routine to every other day to maintain his knee. "Osi's feeling is he wants to get it cleaned up now because he is looking forward to playing this season, and he wants to do it without the knee being an issue for him. He told me how much he really enjoyed being back on the field this week, and he's looking forward to getting back out there once he recovers from the procedure." Jason Pierre-Paul, who will start at right defensive end while Umenyiora is out, is also expected to practice Friday after missing a couple of practices this week with back tightness. Source: ESPN New York
