Randle pain means no gain for WR in opener

RUEBEN RANDLE’S knee tendinitis might keep him out of action for longer than the Giants had hoped.

The fourth-year receiver was held without a catch and barely played in Friday night’s preseason-opening loss to the Bengals in Cincinnati, after a week in which he was barely able to practice. And on Saturday, coach Tom Coughlin admitted that Randle had been “in pain.”

“He wanted to go, and he felt like he could go,” Coughlin said. “He thought he could play, he did not warm up well. We probably should have shut him down right away, but he had played a few snaps. He definitely was not himself and he was in pain.”

Randle, who is expected to be the Giants’ third receiver this season, struggled throughout last week. He took part in just one of the Giants’ joint practice sessions with the Bengals, and even that ended with him icing both knees.

It seems likely that the Giants will rest Randle this week, opening reps for fifthround pick Geremy Davis, veterans James Jones and Preston Parker, and 2014 preseason star Corey Washington, all of whom are competing for roster spots behind Odell Beckham Jr., Randle and Victor Cruz.

LUKEWARM REVIEWS FOR LINE

The debut of the rebuilt offensive line was an uneven one, according to Coughlin, although the coach was pleased with the play of first-round pick Ereck Flowers, the team’s new left tackle.

“Everybody wants to know how Flowers played,” Coughlin said. “I thought he played OK.”

The rest of the line, however, failed to consistently open holes in the run game. The Giants rushed for 106 yards against the Bengals, although first-team running backs Rashad Jennings, Shane Vereen and Andre Williams combined for just 16 yards on six carries.

“I just think as a group we weren’t able to execute together in any capacity that allowed us to have total success with a play,” Coughlin said.

AKEEM THE DREAM

One of the few bright spots in the preseason opener was the play of undrafted free agent running back Akeem Hunt. The speedy rookie out of Purdue managed 18 rushing yards on three carries, and he had the Giants’ most dynamic play of the game, taking the game’s second kickoff 70 yards before being tripped up on the sidelines.

Hunt also opened the game as the Giants’ starting return man.

“That’s what I was looking for,” Coughlin said, “was the kickoff return. I was glad to see it. It looked like it was going to go (all the way) for a second.”