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[UPDATE, 09/04/10 4:31 PM EDT: Jay Alford has been cut. Have to say I called this one. Tough break for a guy who looked like he was on the verge of becoming a good player before getting hurt a year ago.]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 3:40 PM EDT: Defense end Alex Hall has been released. My guess is Jerry Reese is working the phones trying to get draft picks in return for a few guys as the 6 p.m. ET deadline approaches. ]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 2:03 PM EDT: Another  roster stunner as Derek Hagan has been cut; Jerome Johnson and Nate Collins released. ]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 12:59 PM EDT: Mike Garafolo tweets that Rhett Bomar will be waived. Have not seen that anywhere else yet, but MG never gets these things wrong. Lot of things happening with this roster I would not have expected 24 hours ago.]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 12:46 PM EDT: The latest cut is offensive lineman Jacob Bender. ]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 11:33 AM EDT: Tim Brown and Gartrell Johnson waived. It is looking like Rhett Bomar will make the final cut.]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 10:42 AM EDT: Bear Pascoe and Scott Chandler both waived;  Also Tommie Hill and Dominic Randolph. Absolutely stunned by the release of Pascoe, leaving only Kevin Boss and Travis Beckum as tight ends.]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 10:23 AM EDT: John Busing,  Dennis Landolt, Jim Cordle have been cut. Busing will be a surprise to some, but I didn't have him on my final 53.]

[UPDATE, 09/04/10 9:47 AM EDT: Defensive tackle Dwayne Hendricks has been waived. ]

NFL teams have to set their 53-man rosters by 6 p.m. ET this evening. Who will be on the New York Giants‘ 53-man roster?

We know Sage Rosenfels and Darius Reynaud will be after Friday night’s trade with Minnesota, and Rhett Bomar most likely won’t be. There are, however, lots of other questions.

Can they find roster space for 10 defensive linemen? Will they bring in a kick returner off the waiver wire? A backup cornerback? Will they release a running back? A linebacker like Gerris Wilkinson or Bryan Kehl? Who will the backup offensive linemen be?

Even once the rosters are set this evening, there is likely to be some shuffling for a couple of days as teams see which players hit the waiver wire.

Use this as your 53-man roster Open Thread for the day. I will try to update it, but if you see news of roster cuts feel free to drop them in the comment. I may start a new thread along the way if the news warrants it, but for now the plan is to just keep the updates here.

ESPN.com previews the Giants, and unfortunately those of you who like a healthy dose of disrespect will be dissapointed. With the exception of John Clayton, the ESPN writers view the Giants as a talented team who, if healthy, should be competitive in the NFC East. To me, that’s a pretty realistic outlook for the Giants season. As much as I hate it, the Cowboys should be the favorites, because their the ones coming off a stronger season and a playoff win and haven’t done anything to make themselves look significantly worse.

Hours prior to the Sage Rosenfels trade, Matt Mosley ranked Rhett Bomar as the fourth best backup QB in the NFC East. Clearly Jerry Reese agreed. I also find it funny that former Super Bowl QB Rex Grossman is ranked third.

Steve Serby of the New York Post believes that Jonathan Goff looks like the answer for the Giants at middle linebacker.

Yet another setback in the young career of running back Andre Brown, who might miss the season opener with a case of turf toe.

Duke Calhoun is an extreme longshot to make the Giants final 53-man roster, but he tried as hard as possible to impress them on Thursday night, and is hoping he proved his value.

Finally, a good article about jack-of-all-trades William Beatty by Ohm Youngmosuk.

Hope everyone has a good Labor Day weekend, and enjoys their last week without actual NFL Football!

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You guys seem more fired up about the New York Giants‘ acquisition of kick return specialist Darius Reynaud from Minnesota than you do about the arrival of Sage Rosenfels as backup quarterback. I happen to agree, since you need a kick returner in every game, the Giants did not have one, and Reynaud has shown to be a good in two seasons with the Vikings.

I know why the Vikings parted with Rosenfels, but I was really curious why they were willing to gave Reynaud to the Giants. So, I reached to the fine folks over at SB Nation’s Vikings website, The Daily Norseman. Christopher Gates, head honcho at the Norseman, sent me the following response:

“I honestly think that the Vikings tried to find a spot for Reynaud any way that they could, but he just didn’t distinguish himself in the way he needed to to secure a roster spot.  In his first two years with the Vikings, he was listed as a WR, though he didn’t actually have any catches during the regular season, and was shifted to running back this year when it appeared that the Vikings’ WR depth chart was getting crowded.

“Reynaud is a pretty good return man . . .his main issue is staying healthy, and he’s had a case of the fumbles more than once.  If he can stay healthy, he’ll be a very good return man for the Giants.  He’s missed games in both of his first two seasons with injuries, but he’s very fast and has good moves in the open field.  I guess he was just the odd man out of the running back battle that was taking place in Minnesota.”

By the way, lots of the commenters at ‘Norsemen’ are not too happy about losing Reynaud.

Rookie linebacker Pat Angerer led the Colts’ D once again in this game with 12 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss.  Fellow linebacker Ramon Humber pitched in with 8 tackles.  The Bengals finished up with 158 yards rushing (6.6 ypc) and 236 yards passing in this game.  The Colts finish the pre-season with a perfectly awful 0-4 record.

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Will the release of veteran quarterback Patrick Ramsey by the New Orleans Saints end up affecting the New York Giants and Rhett Bomar? We will just have to wait and see.

Ramsey, a seven-year veteran, has played just four games since the 2005 season. He has not played an NFL game since going on Injured Reserve with an elbow problem while with Denver in 2008.

As far as I’m concerned, Ramsey was never very good in the first place, and it’s been so long since he has really played bringing him in would be risky. I would rather stick with Bomar.

One other note: Derrick Ward is now a Houston Texan.

• The status of several injured players — Andre Brown, Shaun O’Hara, Aaron Ross and Phillip Dillard — for the season opener vs. Carolina is undetermined.
• D.J. Ware, who has not returned any kickoffs in preseason, could wind up as the return man Week 1. I guess that would shoot down my thought that Ware is not making the roster.
• The door is not closed on bringing in another quarterback, but Coughlin seems happy with Rhett Bomar’s progress, saying he has “been impressive in the way in which he has improved.”
• Coughlin was surprised by Brandon Jacobs‘ post-game comments to ESPN, and has addressed them with him. Coughlin said “We have always been a multiple running back situation. Nothing has changed.”

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With NFL teams needing to get to the 53-man roster limit Saturday, here is one final projection for what I think the New York Giants roster could look like.

To be honest, I feel like I’m on a little shaky ground as I do this. There are several positions in flux, at least in my mind, and the Giants could be fairly active with waiver-wire pickups over the weekend. So, let’s just see how close I can get.

Quarterbacks (2) – Eli Manning, Rhett Bomar

Analysis — Opportunity knocked for Bomar this preseason, and he has taken advantage of it. With Manning sidelined for a game and Jim Sorgi landing on Injured Reserve, the second-year player from Sam Houston State has done enough to earn this job. He is a work in progress, sure, and if the right veteran falls from the tree of an NFL roster it would not be shocking for the Giants to make a move there. Remember, however, that the Giants have been trying for years to develop a young backup quarterback of their own. Bomar could be that guy.

Running Backs (5) — Ahmad Bradshaw, Brandon Jacobs, Andre Brown, Gartrell Johnson, Madison Hedgecock

Analysis — Sorry, D.J. Ware. You had a nice game Thursday night, but your time has come and gone. The key indicator for me is that Ware, who returned some kickoffs last season, has not gotten any opportunities there at all. Gartrell Johnson has been the lead blocker on kickoffs the entire preseason. Johnson ran well last night, made a nice tackle on special teams and did a good job picking up blitzers, particularly on the game-winning touchdown pass. Andre Brown has earned his opportunity, even if turf toe sidelines him for Week 1.

Wide Receivers (6) – Steve Smith, Hakeem Nicks, Mario Manningham, Victor Cruz, Derek Hagan, Ramses Barden.

Analysis – I really had hopes Tim Brown would show enough to make the final roster, but it just did not happen. Barden is sixth on the list right now, and at this point it looks like he might spend a lot of Sundays inactive again.

Tight Ends (3) — Kevin Boss, Bear Pascoe, Scott Chandler

Analysis — Yes, Scott Chandler as the third tight end instead of Travis Beckum. No, I don’t think the Giants are giving up on Beckum. Just a suspicion here that Beckum winds up on Injured Reserve. He has barely practiced most of the preseason, and whenever he does he seems to wind up sidelined again with some type of neck ailment. Whatever is going on with the guy, it’s tough to give a roster spot to a backup who can’t even get on the practice field. IR would be a logical option. I’m curious about the medical reports on Beckum over the next day or so, because this one will change if the Giants believe Beckum is healthy enough.

Offensive Linemen (9) — Starters: David Diehl, Rich Seubert, Shaun O’Hara, Chris Snee, Kareem McKenzie. Reserves: Will Beatty, Mitch Petrus, Shawn Andrews, Adam Koets

Analysis — A lot of things clarified themselves about this group Thursday night. Shawn Andrews could be a beast once he learns the offense. Adam Koets is making the team. Somehow, Guy Whimper might still find a roster spot — I just can’t figure out how. Jacob Bender, a guy we have not talked about the entire preseason, may find his way to the practice squad.

Defensive Line (9) – Justin Tuck, Mathias Kiwanuka, Osi Umenyiora, Jason Pierre-Paul, Dave Tollefson, Chris Canty, Barry Cofield, Linval Joseph, Rocky Bernard

Analysis — I just can’t see any possible way the Giants can keep 10 defensive linemen. Which means, unfortunately, Jay Alford is the odd man out. When preseason started I would have said Rocky Bernard would lose his spot, but Bernard started Thursday night and has made some nice plays in all four of the preseason games. He has to stay. Dave Tollefson has to stay, as well, since he is a key special teams guy.

Linebackers (7) — Michael Boley, Keith Bulluck, Jonathan Goff, Clint Sintim, Gerris Wilkinson, Phillip Dillard, Chase Blackburn

Analysis — Before Thursday night, I though Bryan Kehl’s roster spot was in serious jeopardy. Nine tackles later, including one on a goal-line stand from inside the one, I still think Kehl goes and Blackburn stays. It could be Wilkinson as odd man out, but we will see.

Cornerbacks (4) — Corey Webster, Terrell Thomas, Aaron Ross, Bruce Johnson

Analysis — I fully expect the Giants to have five corners when the season opens against Carolina. I just don’t expect the fifth corner to come from anyone on the current roster. Simply, D.J. Johnson, Seth Williams and Courtney Brown are not — in my eyes — worthy of NFL roster spots.

Safeties (5) – Antrel Rolle, Deon Grant, Kenny Phillips, Michael Johnson, Sha’reef Rashad

Analysis — Obviously, we know who the big three are at safety. I had been convinced prior to Thursday that Michael Johnson’s days were numbered, but he played fairly well against the Patriots. In addition, neither Sha’reef Rashad nor John Busing have really been impressive. I have Rashad on the 53-man right now, but if I was him I would be nervous. He could be the odd man out when (yes, when, not if) the Giants grab a veteran cornerback off the waiver wire. Or, for that matter, if the Giants want to keep Whimper or Alford.

Specialists (3) – Punter, Matt Dodge; Placekicker, Lawrence Tynes; Long snapper, Zak DeOssie

Analysis — The only question mark is Dodge. I think he has shown enough improvement throughout camp to earn the job. If he struggles, though, the Giants won’t hesitate to replace him during the season.

Other notes

First, I fully expect the Giants to be active on the waiver wire. A kick returner, a cornerback, maybe a backup quarterback are all among the possibilities.

Second, since the Practice Squad question always comes up, here are the basics of the Practice Squad rules from the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

• Practice Squads consist of up to eight players.
• Practice Squad players are free to sign with other teams during the season, provided they are placed on that team’s 53-man roster.
• A player cannot serve more than two seasons on an NFL Practice Squad.
• To be eligible for a Practice Squad a player must a) have less than one full season of NFL experience on an active roster b) free-agent players who have been on an Active List for fewer than nine NFL games.

By the way, if you were so incline you could read the entire CBA here.

(E-mail Ed at bigblueview@gmail.com. Follow Big Blue View on Twitter.)

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Rhett Bomar tossed a 60-yard touchdown pass to Duke Calhoun late in the fourth quarter to give the New York Giants a 20-17 preseason victory over New England Thursday night.

Question is, did Bomar (11-for-24, 171 yards, one touchdown, one interception) do enough to keep the Giants from going out and finding another backup quarterback?

We will just have to wait and see. Back with the ‘Kudos & Wet Willies’ in the morning.

In the meantine, chat about Bomar or anyone else you think played his way on — or off — the roster.

You won’t see much of the New York Giants starters tonight, but there are still some issues to be settled when it comes to the 53-man roster.

• Will a kickoff and punt return man emerge?
• How will the backup offensive line situation shake out?
• Will any of the young backup cornerbacks play well enough to earn a job?
• What will the Giants do about a backup quarterback.

BY THE NUMBERS: Victor Cruz leads the Giants with 12 catches for 251 yards (a 20.9 yards per catch average) and four touchdowns … Andre Brown has 21 carries for 95 yards (4.5 yards per carry) … Rhett Bomar is 29-of-53 (54.7%) for 374 yards, and has an 81.8 QB rating … The Giants have averaged 17.8 yards on kickoff returns, while opponents have averaged 26.8 yards. Tim Brown’s 19.3 yards per return is the best thus far for the Giants … Corey Webster has team highs with four passes defensed and two interceptions … Antrel Rolle has a team-leading 15 tackles, and Gerris Wilkinson has 13 … Justin Tuck has 2.5 sacks and three tackles for loss

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While we wait for kickoff of tonight’s final preseason game between our New York Giants and the New England Patriots I thought we could go Touring SB Nation to see what the other fine football writers around these parts are discussing. I found lots of interesting stuff, some of which might even impact the Giants at some point.

• The Daily Norseman is wondering whether Sage Rosenfels or Tarvaris Jackson should be Brett Favre’s backup in Minnesota. Pay attention to this one, because we know the Giants are sniffing around for an experienced backup QB, and one of these guys could land with Big Blue if they are cut loose.
• Turf Show Times has apparently lost its sense of perspective. Sam Bradford the most important Ram ever? Didn’t a guy named Kurt Warner win you a Super Bowl a few years back? Oh, and before the guy has even played a meaningful down? Give me a break!
• Remember all the gnashing of teeth around here when the Philadelphia Eagles hired the highly-regarded Bobby April as their special teams coach? Well, SB Nation Philly is complaining because the Eagles special teams have not been very special during the preseason. Join the club, guys. We have no sympathy.
• SB Nation Arizona is wondering if the Arizona Cardinals have destroyed Matt Leinart’s career.
• SB Nation Denver looks at the top five questions facing the Broncos as they enter the season.
• CincyJungle plays mad scientist and tries to dissect the Bengals.