Rock: Quiet Osi's even sacked his former personality

Osi Umenyiora has become boring. And it's working.

He's the Giants' leader in sacks with eight, the league leader in forced fumbles with seven, on the field virtually every snap of the game - his sideline time is now limited to breathers, not benchings - and he could be on his way back to a Pro Bowl.

So what do we get from Umenyiora on this remarkable turnaround in performance and personality? Not even a good-natured "Told you so."

He's become the Quiet Man, although invisible might be a more apt description. He's seldom in the locker room to meet with reporters, and when he does breeze through he doesn't stop for interviews. Last week he was asked if he had a minute for some questions.

"See you on Sunday," he said politely.

Even then, at his postgame chats in front of his locker, Umenyiora talks like a robot with swift, generic answers. On Sunday, after he had two more sacks and the Giants beat the Lions, he downplayed his performance by saying things like "a sack is just a tackle for loss" and described his attitude as "thankful" for the opportunity to play.

Isn't this the bombastic guy who threatened to retire if he wasn't going to be playing only nine months ago? Who thought his time with the Giants were coming to an end in the final days of the 2009 season?

Clearly it's not. On the field or off.

Umenyiora has made a conscious decision to shut up and play. He's keeping up both ends of that sentiment.

That leaves his performance to do the talking for him, although his teammates chime in from time to time.

"We always mess with him because even when he gets those sacks, he never tackles the quarterback," defensive tackle Chris Canty said Monday. "He just knocks the ball out. He doesn't want to get his uniform dirty, I guess."

Last week defensive tackle Barry Cofield said the linemen had figured out why Umenyiora strips the ball from quarterbacks so much: "So he doesn't have to share any sacks."

We're only left to assume that Umenyiora is as happy with his play as his teammates are. That the dark cloud that seemed to follow him throughout the offseason has given way and he is in a better place mentally. He's traded sound bites for sacks, a trade any Giants fan would eagerly accept.

Physically, he is managing knee and hip injuries by not practicing one day a week, typically on Wednesdays. He reportedly came close to not playing three weeks ago but a shot of cortisone and the news that Mathias Kiwanuka had been ruled out with a bulging disc in his neck put him on the field. He had three of the Giants' 10 sacks against the Bears that game.

Tom Coughlin was asked a question about Umenyiora's attitude earlier this week. He closed his eyes, shook his head, and took a deep breath. Just a few weeks ago, such a query would have been focused on a surly comment or gripe by the defensive end. Now, though, it is being asked in regard to Umenyiora's apparently renewed spirit.

"Osi has played well and he's made up his mind to play well," Coughlin said Monday. "I think his teammates, the encouragement, what he brings to the table in terms of his ability, his conviction, his desire to be the very best that he can be, that's, I think, where he is.

"He's an excellent football player playing very well," Coughlin added.

What more is there to be said? Certainly nothing by Umenyiora.