EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The New York Giants on Tuesday released wide receiver Preston Parker, who dropped five passes in the team's first two games.
While justifiable for performance reasons, the move was a mild surprise a day after Giants quarterback Eli Manning said Parker is "going to be fine.
"I'm going to keep throwing to him," Manning had said Monday.
Asked for a reason for the decision, Giants coach Tom Coughlin said it was to make room on the roster for defensive tackle Kenrick Ellis, a late training camp cut who re-signed Tuesday with the team thin at defensive tackle.
Pressed further and asked whether Parker was cut to send a message about unacceptable performance, Coughlin said, "I'll leave that up to you."
"Preston Parker, for the majority of the time he was here, was a physical, tough football player who made plays when called upon," Coughlin said. "That hadn't been the case so far this year. We thank him for his service."
Parker was pressed into duty as the Giants' slot receiver last year when Victor Cruz tore the patellar tendon in his knee, and he caught 36 passes for 418 yards and two touchdowns.
With Cruz still sidelined to start this season, Parker again got the job as the team's No. 3 receiver and had five catches for 43 yards in the first two games. But he did have too many drops, so even though Cruz is still not ready to return, Parker is gone.
Coughlin said the other healthy members of the team's wide receiver corps, including Odell Beckham Jr., Rueben Randle, Dwayne Harris and Geremy Davis, all can play the slot position if needed. Julian Talley and Myles White are the two receivers on the Giants' practice squad, in case they want to activate a fifth receiver in advance of Thursday's game against Washington.