Jason Pierre-Paul hasn't returned to his pre-fireworks-injury form, but he's also played in just three games this season for the Giants after losing his index finger and the tip of his thumb in a July 4 incident that could've been much worse.
Pierre-Paul, who had 12.5 sacks in 2014 but has yet to register one this season, talked to the New York Post about the accident.
"It wasn’t scary at all. I just went straight to the hospital. Didn’t panic, no nothing, I just went straight to the hospital. One of my friends took me there," he said. "It wasn’t painful at all. It was no pain, no nothing at the time. I was just like, 'I gotta get my hand treated.' I lost a lot of blood."
EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS: First look at Jason Pierre-Paul’s hand without a bandage. http://t.co/G8FSGgKEck pic.twitter.com/Vaf0dj8aGk
— NY Daily News Sports (@NYDNSports) September 17, 2015
Initially, it wasn't clear if Pierre-Paul would ever play football again. In fact, there were concerns that he could lose his hand.
"Even the doctors counted me out," Pierre-Paul said. "They were like, 'Yeah, we’re gonna have to cut his whole hand off' and, you know … I just told the doctor not to cut my hand and passed out.
"It’s easier to take a shortcut out. I knew for a fact that my hand … I might say it’s severely damaged or whatever, but I knew it wasn’t that bad, like I can still play football."
And Pierre-Paul is back on the field trying to help the Giants, and their 27th-ranked defense, according to Football Outsiders, win the division (at 5-6 they're currently tied with the Redskins). Next up: the Jets.
And after the season, JPP says he'll give all the details of what happened last July.
"That’s a story I’m gonna give at the end of the season," he said. "That’s a big story right there."