Giants receiver <a href="https://www.on3.com/db/sterling-shepard-108642/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sterling Shepard</a> was only on the field briefly in Friday’s preseason contest against the Panthers, but it marked a big moment. Seeing his first game action in nearly a year after suffering an ACL tear this past September, Shepard hauled in a six-yard reception from <a href="https://www.on3.com/db/tyrod-taylor-118750/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tyrod Taylor</a> late in the second quarter.



Although it ended up being the only catch of the game for Shepard, it was a welcome sight to see given his struggles with injuries over the past couple of seasons. Coach Brian Daboll spoke on what it meant not only to Shepard, but the whole team.



“It’s good when you are coming back from that, you know, the history that he’s had the last couple of years. It was good for him,” <a href="https://www.nfl.com/news/giants-brian-daboll-on-sterling-shepard-s-return-first-catch-since-acl-tear-it-w?campaign=Twitter_atn" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Daboll said according to NFL.com</a>. “But he’s such a good teammate and such a competitor. I’m always checking with him, how’s he doing on the sideline, are you good to go and he’s competitive as always.”



Shepard has played a total of just 10 games over the past two seasons. He missed several games in 2021 due to a hamstring injury before suffering a torn Achilles in Week 15 that ended his season. He somehow managed to return for Week 1 of the following year but tore his ACL just three games into the season. 



Injuries have plagued Shepard throughout his career, as he has managed just two full seasons in his seven years in the NFL. Still, he’s proven effective when on the field. In his first five NFL seasons, Shepard averaged just over 700 yards receiving. He appeared in 12 contests during the 2020 season to record 66 catches for 656 yards and three TDs. 



He’s been a regular contributor for the Giants ever since they drafted him in the second round out of <a href="https://www.on3.com/teams/oklahoma-sooners/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Oklahoma</a> in 2016. Now hoping to put his injury struggles behind him and stay healthy in 2023, he’ll aim to continue to be a key part of the offense. 



“You have such empathy for the players in this game because there’s always nicks and bruises, but then there’s injuries and some of them are bad,” Daboll said. “Some of them have long recovering injuries and you don’t really get to see behind the scenes of the work ethic that they put in, the grind, how hard it is to come back from one of those and then another one and you’re out there by yourself, you meet with the trainers and you’re kind of away from the team and then you come back and you start slowly integrating.”



The Giants are coming off of a 9-7-1 finish and playoff appearance this past season, but ranked near the bottom of the league in passing offense. With Shepard back, however, they’ll aim to improve those numbers and make another postseason push. 



Shepard’s next chance to see the field will come in New York’s final preseason game against the Jets on Aug. 26. After that, he’ll gear up for the regular season opener on Sept. 10 against the Dallas Cowboys.

brian-daboll-happy-sterling-shepard-after-return-first-catch-since-acl-tear

5GOATs

Brian Daboll happy for Sterling Shepard after return, first catch since ACL tear

team image

Pro News

NFL News

NFL Draft News

NASCAR

NBA News

NBA Draft News

Culture

Sports Betting

About

Football

Basketball

Women's Basketball

Softball

Baseball

Alabama

Arizona State

Arizona

Arkansas

Auburn

Baylor

Boston College

California

Removed

Clemson

Colorado

Duke

Florida

Florida State

Georgia

Georgia Tech

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Iowa State

Kansas

Kansas State

Kentucky

Lettermen Row

Lettermen Lounge

Louisville

Maryland

Miami

Michigan State

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi State

Missouri

NC State

Nebraska

North Carolina

Northwestern

Notre Dame

Ohio State

Oklahoma

Oklahoma State

Ole Miss

The Main Board

Oregon

Oregon State

Penn State

Pittsburgh

Purdue

Rutgers

South Carolina

Stanford

Syracuse

Tennessee

Texas A&M

Texas

Texas Tech

UCLA

Utah

Vanderbilt

Virginia

Virginia Tech

Wake Forest

Washington

Washington State

West Virginia

Wisconsin

BamaOnLine

BOL Round Table

Inside Texas

IT Members Only

DawgsHQ

Dawg Walk

Scoop Duck

Recruiting & Sports

AuburnSports

The Corner

WeAreSC

GarryP's Trojan Huddle

The Wolverine

The Fort

The Lions Den

The Wolfpacker

The Wolves’ Den

GatorsOnline

Swamp Talk

Alabama A&M

Alabama State

Albany

Alcorn State

Abilene Christian

Appalachian State

Akron

Army

Austin Peay

Arkansas-Pine Bluff

Arkansas-Little Rock

Arkansas State

Air Force

Ball State

American

Wofford

Winthrop

Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Wisconsin-Green Bay

Wichita State

Western Carolina

Volleyball

Gymnastics

Men's Lacrosse

Women's Lacrosse

Men's Soccer

Women's Soccer

Women's Track

Men's Golf

Women's Golf

Men's Hockey

Women's Hockey

Men's Swimming

Women's Swimming

Wrestling

Men's Tennis

Women's Tennis

Annual $1

Annual Premium

Annual $1 

Monthly

Annual

Unlimited Access to This and All Articles.

Article (On3 Plus Rivals)

Forum (On3 Plus Rivals)

Intro

Join

College scoop, experts, and community - all in one.

Winback

Top 25 sees big movement

AP Poll

Composite of major outlets

Way-Too-Early Top 25

Punishing players' wallets

Deion Sanders

New No. 1 overall seed

Bracketology update

Most impactful transfers

Instant Impact