One of the New York Giants' best players has been out since October, and his return is a mystery

Coming off three stellar breakout seasons in which he emerged as one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, Victor Cruz's 2014 season was cut short when he tore his patellar tendon in October.

Cruz missed the rest of the season, of course, but was scheduled to make his comeback in training camp this offseason and play in Week 1.

However, early into training camp Cruz injured his calf in his opposite leg, sidelining him for much of training camp and the preseason.

What was believed to be a simple aggravation has worsened as time has gone on, and Cruz has now been absent for longer than anyone initially projected. He hasn't practiced since August 17, and he missed the entire preseason, getting scratched week after week.

His return date was always set for Week 1 of the regular season, beginning this Sunday. Now, that date seems to be a stretch, too. ESPN's Dan Graziano wrote on September 3 that the Giants would be "crazy to rush" Cruz back for Week 1, saying:

As of Tuesday, which was 12 days before the opener, he wasn't even allowed to jog on the side during practice. Given his condition and the severity of his knee injury, it feels as though more than 12 days should pass between his first jog and his first appearance on an NFL field in front of a huge crowd and against an angry defense.

On Wednesday, Cruz again didn't practice, and Giants head coach Tom Coughlin gave a pretty bleak update:

The calf injury has now kept him out for almost a month, he wasn't allowed to jog as of a week ago, and he hasn't gotten to actually test his repaired knee in a game.

There are positives in that the more time Cruz misses, the more he obviously heals his calf and the further he gets from the serious knee injury last season. However, clearly this calf injury is baffling the Giants, as Cruz's return keeps getting pushed back. He hasn't played a game in almost a year, and the rust will take some time to shake off.

This is a bummer for the Giants, who were excited to pair Cruz and breakout star Odell Beckham Jr. together to create one of the more formiddable wide-out pairs in the NFL. That could still happen, but nobody is sure when Cruz is returning, and nobody is sure if and when he'll look like the receiver who caught over 2,500 yards and 19 touchdowns in his first two seasons. 

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