Victor Cruz hit the next phase in his rehab from a devastating patellar tendon tear suffered last season. The New York Giants receiver is now able to cut.
"We got (to cutting)," Cruz said Tuesday night via NJ.com. "We started running some intermediate routes on air and stuff like that. It's feeling good. It's feeling good so far. I think I'm 75-80 percent right now. It's just a matter of building it."
The percentage Cruz estimated is interesting, given that general manager Jerry Reece recently called the receiver 85 to 90 percent. Usually it's the player with the optimistic guess, not the front office.
Regardless of what arbitrary percentage number Cruz's rehab is labeled at this point, it's a good sign that the receiver was able to cut during drills -- something he wasn't able to do when last we heard from Big Blue's most famous salsa dancer. He'll continue to sit out the team's offseason workouts and June minicamp.
Later this summer we'll have a better idea of where Cruz's rehab is in relation to the glorified "100 percent" label. While the team has been optimistic Cruz will return ready for Week 1, there is a chance the wideout opens up on the PUP list to start the season. Given the severity of this type of knee injury, there is no reason for the Giants to rush out a less-than-fully-healthy Cruz if a few more weeks might make him whole.
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