The Sports Xchange

New York Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul met with the media on Friday for the first time since his fireworks accident and showed off his mangled right hand.

Pierre-Paul didn’t offer many details about the Fourth of July accident or his decision to rehab in Florida away from the team before signing with the Giants on Tuesday.

Pierre-Paul said he is fortunate to be alive and that he will still be the “same JPP.”

“It wasn’t frightening at all,” Pierre-Paul told reporters after having his right index finger amputated from the accident. “I am not going to go into detail with it. It is something I do every year for the kids. … It just happened. I did it for six, seven years. I live and learn from it and moved on.”

Pierre-Paul won’t travel with the team to New Orleans to face the Saints on Sunday. He began a two-week roster exemption which will allow him to practice with the team while not counting against the 53-man roster.

“I don’t want to be a distraction to my teammates,” Pierre-Paul said while he was rubbing his hand throughout the 12-minute interview.

Jason Pierre-Paul thanked the Giants organization and his teammates for supporting and welcoming him back.

When asked about the perception that he turned his back on the organization initially after the accident, JPP replied, “Next question.”

“You can’t do nothing when you’re on anesthesia, waking up, going in and out of conscious,” he said. “I had no reason not to let them in. I just didn’t know. I don’t know who was making my decisions. It could’ve been the doctors.”

Pierre-Paul was unapologetic for his decisions with fireworks and declared himself a better player.

“I’m the same JPP that I was last year,” Pierre-Paul said. “There’s not going to be a major adjustment. As far as my hand goes, I’ll get used to it. I’m just fortunate to play football again.

“I don’t have a desire to prove anybody wrong. The day I walked in here I already won. People said I was going to be out for the whole season. And I knew what kind of effort I put in the offseason way before this happened. Just coming back, I already won.”

Pierre-Paul’s contract is worth a maximum of $8.763 million with incentives. While no official timeframe has been established for Pierre-Paul’s return to the lineup, he could be added to the 53-man roster once the two-week roster exemption expires, which could be in time for the home game against the New England Patriots on Nov. 15.