He is listed on the roster. He has a locker. He continues to wear No. 28. His name continues to appear on the depth chart at running back.
Yes, Paul Perkins is still here.
If you are surprised to learn Perkins continues to be a full-fledged member of the Giants, well, do not feel bad. In many ways, it is not easy to remember he is around.
Does he feel like he is viewed as the forgotten man?
“Honestly, I don’t know, I don’t have the temperature of the fans or the media,’’ Perkins told The Post this week. “The people that know I’m still on the team know I’m still on the team, so that’s all that really matters to me.’’
He is still on the team, one of the running backs pushing and shoving to claim a space as one of the backups to Saquon Barkley. Wayne Gallman enters his third season with the Giants and is a fully capable reserve, and possibly, more than that. Rod Smith, a former Cowboys caddy to Ezekiel Elliott, was signed this offseason. Eli Penny is a fullback. Jon Hillman is an undrafted rookie from Rutgers. Perkins is in the mix, somewhere.
“Blessed,’’ Perkins said. “The organization, upper management really, looked out for me, kept me around, which is a blessing. I’m reminded of that every time I go out there, that they kept me out here. I got to prepare for it the best I can.’’
The more common course of action for the Giants was to previously have jettisoned Perkins. He was a 2016 fifth-round draft pick out of UCLA and showed promise as a rookie, averaging 4.1 yards with his 112 rushing attempts. Then-coach Ben McAdoo named him the opening day starter in 2017 — an assignment that lasted just four games, with Perkins averaging just 1.9 yards per attempt. He received just nine more carries the remainder of the season. When he suffered a pectoral injury in the 2018 offseason, Perkins was waived and spent all of last year on the non-football injury list.
Rather than fade away, Perkins was a constant presence in the Giants’ locker room — sitting in the meetings with the running backs, helping Barkley adjust to the NFL experience (for the record, Perkins describes Barkley as “awesome”). There was a new regime upstairs that did not draft him and a new coaching staff on the field that did not know him. Perkins contributed enough to earn a stay of roster execution, and he is back, again, fighting for a job, just 24 years old and ready to roll.
There is no doubt Perkins’ professionalism factored in the decision to keep him around.
“Just another set of eyes that’s removed from the game,’’ Perkins said. “When you’re removed and you don’t have any stake in it you get to have an objective viewpoint, which I think kind of helped the guys a little bit. I learned a lot about humility, patience. It was awesome to help everybody I could from what I was seeing and my knowledge.’’
The first organized team activity practice Monday was another step in the climb for Perkins. The coaching staff was impressed with his work the first two days of OTA action.
“I feel really good,’’ Perkins said. “That’s probably what makes it even more special, because I feel 100%. Body feels good, mind feels good.’’
When was the last time he could say that? He laughed.
“I’d say my rookie year,’’ he said.
At 5-foot-11 and 214 pounds, Perkins has the requisite quickness. Not having enough patience as his blocking developed was his undoing when he got the ball. He also ran behind some dreadful offensive lines.
“Being away from the game, not practicing for a whole year, was tough,’’ he said. “It’s an honor and privilege to come out here and play with these guys. I’m gonna add wherever we’re lacking or whatever they need me to be, that’s what I’m gonna be.’’
There is a new coaching staff to impress. It will not be easy.
“I don’t know the temperature of the coaches, either,’’ Perkins said. “All I can do is go out there and make them like me.’’