As soon as Steve Smith got his MRI results Thursday night, he was on the phone to Mario Manningham, making sure his replacement was ready. He was quizzing him on formations, explaining some of the coverages he's likely to see from the Cowboys.
He wanted to make sure Manningham was up to speed, because Smith could be out for a while.
The Giants revealed Friday that Smith, their Pro Bowl receiver, suffered a partially torn pectoral muscle in practice on Thursday and is out at least two weeks - and probably more. It's a huge blow to an offense that has been rolling the last four weeks, and is now also without two linemen - center Shaun O'Hara and left tackle David Diehl.
Losing Smith, though, could have bigger ramifications. Hakeem Nicks is having a Pro Bowl season, having caught 51 passes for 653 yards and nine touchdowns through the first eight games. He has been free to do that, in part, because Smith (47-517-3) has drawn most of the double teams.
Beginning Sunday, when the Giants (6-2) take on the Dallas Cowboys (1-7), that's likely to change.
"Definitely when he's in the slot, they like to play over the top of Steve because that's where he did a lot of his work," Nicks said. "We'll see how defenses play us now, and we'll adjust accordingly."
How well they adjust may depend on the 24-year-old Manningham, who has 25 catches for 385 yards and three touchdowns as the Giants' third receiver. He hasn't played a lot in the slot. He also has had issues with running precise routes, which has kept him from having more of a role in the offense.
But Manningham is a dynamic talent who had a 25-yard touchdown catch in Dallas three weeks ago after torching the Cowboys for 10 catches, 150 yards and a touchdown early in 2009. His ability has never been a question. He just needs to put everything else together, starting right now.
"I had Steve break stuff down for me," Manningham said. "And it's real helpful because I've never really seen anybody cover Steve. You have to read the coverages faster than you would on the outside. It's a lot. But we've got to step our game up as a receiving corps. Everybody."
That includes Ramses Barden, the Giants' 6-6 project who was drafted out of Division II Cal Poly in 2009 and now steps in as the third receiver - including some assignments in the slot. Barden, who has two catches this season and three in his career, has been itching for a bigger role - or any role, really - in the offense.
Not surprisingly, Smith called Barden to walk him through his new assignments, too.
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