A significant injury to Micah McFadden is not the way that the Giants wanted to get a longer look at Darius Muasau.
McFadden is expected to miss a significant part of the season with a foot injury, The Post confirmed.
He left last Sunday’s loss to the Commanders on a cart with his right leg wrapped in an air cast before returning to the sideline with his right foot in a boot.
It’s a disappointing twist for the Giants, who avoided the worst-case scenario when X-rays Sunday ruled out McFadden’s initial fear for a broken leg but still took a major hit upon receiving the results of further imaging.
The Giants turned to Muasau as McFadden’s replacement during the game – he immediately gave up a touchdown catch to tight end Zach Ertz before settling in – and he is likely to be next up Sunday against the Cowboys.
But versatile rookie Abdul Carter played inside linebacker for two seasons at Penn State before becoming a dominant edge rusher, so perhaps he could find some snaps next to Bobby Okerke in packages that included McFadden.
The Giants only had edges Carter, Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux – three of their most-productive and highest-paid defensive players – on the field together for eight of 70 defensive snaps in Week 1 against the Commanders.
It’s a terribly timed break for McFadden, who is coming off back-to-back 100-tackle seasons and at the start of a contract year. He said during training camp that there had not yet been any negotiations on an extension.
“That’s a tough loss,” Burns said after the game. “People don’t know how valuable he is to this defense. He flies under the radar a lot, but Micah is a baller.”
Muasau was a sixth-round pick in 2024 who arrived with a special-teams-first reputation. He made seven starts on defense as a rookie.
“I think he’s a very instinctive player,” head coach Brian Daboll said during training camp. “He’s earned playing time, too. He’ll play.”
