Giants re-sign cornerback Thomas

Terrell Thomas and the Giants both got what they wanted: each other.

The cornerback who was due to become a free agent Tuesday afternoon re-signed with the Giants only a few hours before he would have hit the open market. His four-year deal allows for assurances on both sides. Thomas gets the longevity of a four-year contract worth more than $28 million if he can prove he's fully recovered from the torn ACL that cost him the 2011 season, and the Giants have an option after the first year in case he isn't.

Thomas will make $2 million in 2012, with a base salary of $1 million, but also has incentives that could bring his salary to $4.75 million for the year. If the Giants like what they see, they can pay an $6-million option bonus next offseason, as well as the rest of the contract.

"They didn't want for me to sign a small contract, then come back to the table next year," Thomas said on SiriusXM Radio shortly after signing the deal. "If I have a great season this year, then I'm underpaid. They wanted to come back with a number that pleases both sides."

Thomas, 27, who tore his ACL in the second preseason game, is still not sprinting, but he said his knee is feeling "great" and that he can cut, jump, lunge and backpedal. He said signing with the Giants was important because they know what he is capable of and won't push him back on the field too quickly.

"There's no rush for me," he said. "I'm proven here. They know who I am and what I can do on the field . . . My biggest thing is to let my knee heal 100 percent and come training camp and the season, I have no setbacks or missed practices because of swelling."

The return of Thomas -- along with the re-signing of cornerbacks Michael Coe and Justin Tryon, who also were on IR for the Giants in 2011 -- means the end of Aaron Ross' tenure with the Giants. The former first-round pick is a free agent and will visit the Bengals Thursday.

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Thomas was a second-round pick in 2008 and started every game in 2009 and 2010, leading the team in tackles and interceptions during those seasons.

"I definitely wanted to come back here," Thomas said. "This is home for me."

Notes & quotes: C David Baas restructured his contract, saving the Giants $1.575 million against the salary cap this year . . . RB Brandon Jacobs was at the Giants' facility Tuesday, but his agent said it was purely a social visit and there are no plans for a reunion at this time, although no doors have been closed . . . The Giants announced Matt Rhule as their assistant offensive line coach and Lunda Wells as offensive assistant . . . T Joel Reinders and TE Larry Donnell, neither of whom has played an NFL game, signed as free agents.