Jason Pierre-Paul having surgery on injured right hand

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Jason Pierre-Paul is set for surgery on his injured right hand.

Jason Pierre-Paul’s quest to regain the form he showed before last year’s stunning Fourth of July fireworks injury continued on Monday.

That’s when the Giants’ defensive end had his latest surgery to repair his mangled right hand, something he shared with the world in an Instagram post.

“Lord I absolutely believe you have the power to heal,” Pierre-Paul said in the post. “If I can bring you more glory through healing, then that’s what I ask for.”

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The surgery was not unexpected. Shortly before the end of the regular season, Pierre-Paul had indicated that he would need at least one more procedure to improve the motion and mechanics in right hand. The amputation of Pierre-Paul’s right index finger had been well-chronicled, but his middle finger, swelled up and misshapen, was largely unusable throughout the 2015 season, and his right thumb also lacked mobility.

Pierre-Paul played eight games with the Giants, donning a club-like bandage on the hand in each one, and he seemed to look forward to offseason surgery, hoping it would restore grip strength and mobility in his middle finger.

“I can’t grip out of my middle finger,” he said in December. “It can’t close right now. That’s the reason why I’m in the club. Once I have my surgery, I’ll be fine. I’m excited to actually get it done.”

If Pierre-Paul can indeed shed the club this offseason, there’s a chance he can regain his old form. He showed his old explosion and athleticism at times in 2015, but he finished with a career-low one sack. He routinely struggled to make plays in the open field, too, essentially unable to reach out and drag down ballcarriers and quarterbacks with a barely functional right hand.

“In this game, it’s good to have two hands to do things,” Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said of Pierre-Paul last month. “When you’ve got one that you don’t use, there’s got to be times when it’s a disadvantage.”

And that’s a disadvantage that could scare off potential JPP suitors this fall – and may even scare off the Giants. Pierre-Paul, who drew the franchise tag from the Giants last spring, before his accident, insists that he’s still an elite defensive end and has indicated that he’s still expecting to be paid like one, despite his shaky 2015.

It’s unlikely that the Giants will franchise Pierre-Paul again, though, which could send him to the free agent market. The Giants are interested in having Pierre-Paul back, co-owner John Mara said on ESPN Radio last week, but they have no plans to overpay.

“He showed us enough to want him back,” Mara said. “But it depends on what the price is.”  

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