Kiwanuka thinks he's near return from neck injury

Mathias Kiwanuka did not practice Wednesday. He didn't even wear his helmet on the field. But just the sight of him doing a little light running, a few agility drills where he skipped around blocking pads lying on the ground, was enough to spark optimism that the defensive end is closer to a return.

"I feel good," said Kiwanuka, who has been sidelined with a bulging disc in his neck since Oct. 1. "The pain is gone, which I'm very happy about. It's just a matter of getting the doctors to clear me at this point."

That's the tricky part. Kiwanuka said he was never in any real pain with his injury, describing it as a stiff neck at first. It was an MRI and a CT scan that caused the Giants to shut him down until the bulge could subside on its own. Kiwanuka said he has not had any further images taken of his neck, but he's been visiting with various doctors on a regular basis.

Unlike other injuries where a player determines when he's fit enough to return, Kiwanuka has almost no input whatsoever on when he will be back working with the team.

"It's a frustrating thing," Kiwanuka said. "As a player you feel like once your body feels good you should be able to go back out there and play. But at the same time I'm not a physician, I didn't go to school for years and spend time researching things to make that decision. From a player's standpoint, yeah, I feel like I can go out there and play. But I have to trust the doctors."

It helps that he can also trust the defense. The Giants have the top unit in the NFL right now and in the last two games - the two games without Kiwanuka - they have dominated the Bears and the Texans.

Kiwanuka has been in a similar situation before, watching from the side while his defensive teammates roll on. He missed the final third of the 2007 season after fracturing his leg and missed the Super Bowl. He called that "the ultimate frustration." These last few weeks have not been like that, he said. Why?

"The fact that there's light at the end of the tunnel," he said. "What I'm hearing now is that there's a very strong possibility I'll be back and be back soon. That makes it easier. I'm just hoping, 'Keep it going until I get back.' "

That's the optimistic line, that Kiwanuka will be back soon. And he's used it before. After the Bears game in which the Giants recorded 10 sacks without him, Kiwanuka suggested that he might even be ready to go against the Texans. He was not.

At the other end of the spectrum is the reality that Kiwanuka might not return to the field again this season. And without a contract for next year, he might never play for the Giants again. Doctors have also expressed that reality to him.

He has not ruled out surgery, although he said a procedure would not necessarily be season-ending. For now, he'll continue to do whatever work the medical staff allows him to do, whether that's riding an exercise bike or jogging between blocking pads. "I could at least feel like I'm part of the team," he said of his limited activities.

Perhaps those activities will continue to increase. Kiwanuka also said he was meeting with doctors Wednesday afternoon and has not ruled out the possibility - far-fetched though it may be - of playing on Sunday against the Lions.

"I always want to be out there on the field," he said. "I'm very excited for when I get the chance to come back. I've been in this situation before, the difference is this time I have a chance to come back this year. Being hurt is tough, but as long as they don't put that IR stamp on you, you always have a chance to come back. That's why I'm keeping my hopes up."