Giants more than ready to go

Justin Tuck had one word when he learned that the lockout had ended, a word that carried both a sense of relief and anticipation.

Said Tuck in a text to Newsday: "Finally."

Indeed. After months of being locked out of the Timex Performance Center, Giants players will be allowed to return to the facility at 10 a.m. Tuesday for physicals and voluntary workouts.

"After a long and strenuous process, we are extremely pleased to be able to get back to our jobs," Giants player representative Shaun O'Hara said in a statement. "The business side of the game has been exhausting for everyone, including the fans . . . It has been an honor to serve and represent my teammates during this process, and I am now looking forward to joining them to commence our season."

Or, as starting cornerback Terrell Thomas said more colloquially on Twitter: "Football is back, let's go baby."

Players will not be required to report for training camp until Friday -- the first full team practice will be Saturday; like all training camp practices, it will be open to the public -- and free agents and draft picks can't be signed until Friday afternoon. But that doesn't mean there won't be a lot going on in the next few days.

For one thing, the Giants finally can welcome their 2011 draft class. Besides first-round pick Prince Amukamara, who was in New York for the draft, no one from the team has met the players since they were selected in April. The team can begin negotiating contracts with the players immediately and undoubtedly will start shoving playbooks at them as they disembark at Newark, but unless they sign a contract, they won't be on the field for the start of training camp. That will mean even more missed time.

The Giants can begin negotiating Tuesday with their own free agents, some of whom they undoubtedly would like to inspect before making any offers. Two of the biggest names on their list -- Steve Smith and Mathias Kiwanuka -- ended the 2010 season on injured reserve with serious ailments. Kiwanuka has been cleared to return to football after suffering a bulging disc in his neck, but Smith still is recovering from microfracture knee surgery. Both could get one-year contracts.

While Tuck and Thomas and most others see the lifting of the lockout as an end, for some players it is just the beginning. Free agents who are not starters for the Giants, such as Chase Blackburn, Dave Tollefson and others, now face further uncertainty as they see just how much they are valued by their team and other organizations. Tollefson told Newsday that although the situation in New York is "unique," he plans to test the market.

The big picture remains positive. The Giants and their 90-man roster -- an assemblage that will be tinkered with for the rest of the week -- will be on the field this weekend and getting ready for a full 2011 season.