Justin Tuck not sure he can play Sunday

Justin Tuck usually jokes around about injuries. When he first suffered his stinger against the Jets 11 days ago he said the coaches pulled him out of the game because they didn't want him to break another fingernail. For most of this past week he's been saying he'll be fine and ready to play on Sunday.

But as of Thursday, that tone changed. A lot. And no one is joking about Tuck's lingering neck injury anymore. When asked if he can guarantee that he'll be ready to go against the Redskins, a question he would have jumped on like a blindsided quarterback just a few days ago, Tuck simply looked at the floor.

"Definitely not," he said.

That doesn't mean he won't. But it certainly does not mean that he will. Tuck did not practice Thursday and there is a chance that a preseason that has riddled the Giants' defense with injuries, costing them two starters lost for the year and at least five other expected contributors sidelined for the first few weeks of the season, could cast one last backbreaking blow against Big Blue.

"We're going to do what's best," Tuck said. "We don't want to go out there and lose a season off of one game. But if I'm ready to play I'm definitely going to strap it up and play."

The Giants and the rest of the NFL are certainly very aware of the cost of neck injuries. Peyton Manning underwent a third neck surgery Thursday and will miss several months in recovery. Mathias Kiwanuka missed almost all of last season with a bulging disc in his neck. And former teammate Antonio Pierce had a similar bulging disc two years ago that ended his career.

"I'm nowhere near that situation," Tuck said of Peyton Manning's surgery, "but it definitely gives you pause . . . I've played through more pain. It's kind of eerie when you're talking about your neck."

Kiwanuka knows that all too well and has been urging Tuck not to be a hero. "That's what I'm preaching because that pretty much saved my career," he said. " . . . You can fight through a lot of things but a neck injury is not one of them."

The Giants are already without Osi Umenyiora. Without Tuck, they would likely start Jason Pierre-Paul and Dave Tollefson as their defensive ends.

The last time Tuck missed a game was in 2006, when he had midseason surgery to repair a Lisfranc injury in his foot. He played with a torn labrum in his shoulder for most of the 2009 season after injuring it in the first game of the season. Sometimes team doctors will tell a player that an injury cannot be worsened by playing with it, as they told Tuck two years ago. "They're not saying that here," he said.

That 2009 season was a difficult one for him physically as well as emotionally. The Giants had a forgettable campaign on defense and Tuck, who was emerging as a leader, said he had difficulty acting like one when he was unable to go full speed in practices and games.

Now that he's a two-time captain, Tuck was asked how he would be able to lead if he had another injury-plagued season.

"I would have to adjust," he said. "It would be hard for me to lead by example when I can't lead by example. But I would still try to be that teammate who would encourage and show guys what I see."