"We held out hope as long as we could," Coach Tom Coughlin said. "Finally, by consensus, the doctors came to this decision. You have to make the right choice and the decision was made that he could not play again this season. My concern is for Mathias. He loves the game, he loves to play, he's proven his versatility this year beyond any question. He's given great effort and he has proven that he is a team player. I feel badly for Mathias because I know how important playing the game of football is to him. Let's get him healthy, back on the field, playing for the New York Giants."

While unhappy he no longer has the option of returning this year, Kiwanuka understands the Giants' decision.

"Like I said before, I felt like, given enough time, I could've made it back this season, but it's the nature of the business," Kiwanuka said. "The Giants had to move on, and I had to be okay with it. Regardless of what happens to me as an individual, I'm definitely still going to work with the Giants organization throughout the term of my contract (which he said expires after this season). I know this team is going be successful, so I'm excited to watch it."

To take Kiwanuka's place on the roster, the Giants signed defensive back/return specialist Will Blackmon, who played the previous four seasons for the Green Bay Packers. Ironically, Blackmon was Kiwanuka's roommate during their senior season at Boston College. They ate dinner together last night.

"Blackmon had a very good workout for us and showed that he has recovered nicely from a serious knee injury (which limited him to three games in 2009)," Reese said. "We expect him to get into the mix quickly on special teams. He has experience and production as a return specialist and cover specialist. He also has played both safety and corner, which gives us some flexibility there as well."