Giants trying to walk “fine line” with Sterling Shepard in practice

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Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard is recovering from a fractured left thumb, but that has not stopped him from limited participation in practices over the last week or so.

Monday’s practice session was a bit less limited than the team would have liked. Shepard had a pass from Eli Manning go through his hands and he came up shaking his left hand while a member of the team’s staff gave him a yellow jersey to wear for the rest of the session.

That jersey is meant to indicate that Shepard shouldn’t be contacted or targeted with passes, but Manning looked his way again and cornerback Deandre Baker tackled the wideout while trying to rip the ball out of his hands.

After the practice, Giants head coach Pat Shurmur said “there are times when people don’t do it exactly the way we want it” and was asked having Shepard in there when there are times that the practice rules won’t be observed.

“Any time we’re practicing we have to be smart,” Shurmur said, via Tom Rock of Newsday. “That’s the fine line between trying to get your work in and being smart.”

Barring any setback on the practice field, Shepard is expected to get the splint off of his thumb at some point this week.