Jason Pierre-Paul training for return to NFL, says it would be 'dope' to play for Giants again

Pierre-Paul, a former All-Pro edge rusher, was not with a team in 2024

Ten years removed from the fireworks accident that cost him 2.5 fingers, edge rusher Jason Pierre-Paul is eyeing a return to the NFL. Though he did not find his way on to a roster last season, the 36-year-old Pierre-Paul told ESPN he has been training and staying in football shape with the hope of earning an opportunity. 

Specifically, he would love the chance to make his way back to the New York Giants, where he spent eight seasons after they selected him in the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft. 

"I think that'll be dope. Tremendous," Pierre-Paul said. "To go back somewhere where my career started ... the fans know me and know the type of player that I am. I'll always be that type of player and just give 'em everything I got, which I know it'll be more than enough."

Pierre-Paul earned his first of two Super Bowl rings with the Giants in 2011. He was also named a first-team All-Pro that same season after logging a career-high 16.5 sacks. 

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He was a mainstay on New York's defensive line until 2015 when, on July 4, a mishap while lighting fireworks damaged his right hand. Pierre-Paul was able to return to the field in November of that same year and remained with New York through the 2017 season. 

The Giants traded Pierre-Paul to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2018. He reached 12.5 sacks in his first season with the Buccaneers and won a second Super Bowl with the franchise in 2020. Pierre-Paul was last in the NFL in 2023 when he appeared in one game with the New Orleans Saints and two games with the Miami Dolphins.