Umenyiora Ends Holdout and Reports to Giants Camp

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New Giants had their first walkthrough of training camp Saturday morning and Osi Umenyiora, as expected, was nowhere to be found at the Timex Performance Center. Umenyiora, unhappy with his contract, seemingly decided to hold out for a second day and pay the consequences — $30,000 worth.

But sometime between the conclusion of the walkthrough at noon and the team’s first official practice at 6 p.m., Umenyiora decided to end his protest and report to Giants training camp. He was expected to arrive in time for the evening practice. That does not mean all is well in East Rutherford, however.

The Pro Bowl defensive end is still seeking a trade or a new contract that he claims General Manager Jerry Reese promised and reportedly said he will never speak to Reese again — even if the issue is resolved.

Earlier in the summer, Umenyiora not only accused Reese of lying, he did so in a sworn affidavit that was filed in a Minnesota federal court as in the players’ antitrust lawsuit against the National Football League during the lockout.

In it, Umenyiora stated that in an April 2008 meeting Reese promised he would renegotiate Umenyiora’s contract in two seasons if he continued playing at a high level.

Over the next two seasons, Umenyiora, now 29, did not miss a game and had 18.5 sacks, including 11.5 in 2010, the third-highest total in his career.

On Friday Reese refused to comment on the matter. When asked if the circumstances meant the situation was beyond repair, was optimistic.

“We’ve all seen worse,” fellow defensive end Justin Tuck said, before Umenyiora ended his holdout. “A couple years ago Michael Strahan was in a similar situation.”

First-round pick still unsigned: Cornerback Prince Amukamara, the Giants’ first-round pick, remains the only unsigned drafted rookie. On Thursday, General Manager Jerry Reese said he did not expect negotiations with the Nebraska product to drag on through training camp.

Amukamara’s future teammates are looking forward to him joining the team soon.

“I have seen some of Prince’s film and he is a great player and I’m pretty sure he is a great person,” defensive back Antrel Rolle said. “You want to have everyone here but at the same time it is a professional business. He has to make sure that he takes care of himself on his end also.”