While much was made of the Super Bowl champions placing one of their key starters on the waiver wire last week, little attention was paid to whom they gained. After letting him marinate in free agency for the entire spring, the Giants opted to bring back Rocky Bernard.
Though Bernard played well for New York last season, coming off the bench to relieve Linval Joseph and Chris Canty, his return may signal some underlying concerns.
The Giants opted to let Bernard walk when free agency began and instead signed another veteran DT, Shaun Rogers, on the day of the draft to fill his role.
Ideally, the Giants would like to have Marvin Austin claim the 4th spot. Austin was considered a steal in 2011 when he was drafted in the 2nd round. After serving a suspension that caused him to miss his senior season, his status as a projected first rounder took a large enough hit that he was able to fall into the mid 2nd.
But Austin suffered a torn pectoral muscle during Week 2 of the preseason and after being sent to IR, it became apparent that he would miss his second straight season.
Not much has been said about Austin's performance during OTAs and mini camps but GM Jerry Reese has hinted that perhaps the young lineman won't receive the typical amount of time that drafted rookies usually are given to find their groove.
It isn't likely that Bernard is being brought back to simply provide an extra training camp body and Markus Kuhn will make this roster unless injury or immigration issues get in the way (he has been unable to practice because of lingering work visa issues).
It is far too early to suggest that Austin is on the verge of losing his roster spot, however, the addition of Bernard certainly raises some questions.
