By Michael Eisen
 
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The release of two former Giants draft choices were among the 14 moves today as the team reduced its roster to 74 players before the NFL’s 4 p.m. deadline that required teams to be at 75.
Offensive lineman Brandon Mosley (injured/back), a fourth-round choice in 2012, and Eric Herman, a seventh-round selection a year later, were let go.
The Giants also placed offensive tackle Will Beatty on the reserve/physically unable to perform list. Beatty, who is rehabbing after surgery to repair a torn pectoral muscle he suffered in May, was placed on PUP at the start of training camp. This designation means he must sit out at least the Giants’ first six games.
 
The Giants placed defensive backs Bennett Jackson (knee) and Josh Gordy (hip) on injured reserve. 
The remaining players who were released included two veterans: wide receiver Juron Criner and punter Robert Malone.
The rest of those waived were rookies or first-year pros: running back Akeem Hunt (injured/hamstring) of Purdue; wide receiver Derrick Johnson of Maine; tight end Will Tye and offensive lineman Michael Bamiro, both of Stony Brook; defensive linemen Jordan Stanton of James Madison and Jimmy Staten of Middle Tennessee State; and safety Justin Halley Florida International.
Mosley spent his entire rookie year on injured reserve after injuring his ankle in the preseason. He played in 13 games with one start in 2013 and in nine games last year. Mosley made his only career start at right guard in Detroit on Dec. 22, 2013. But he was forced to leave the game in the first quarter after breaking his hand. Last season, he played in nine games on special teams, including three in which he saw action as a reserve guard.
 
Herman spent the first 16 weeks of the 2013 season on the Giants’ practice squad. He was signed to the active roster onDec. 25 and was inactive for the season finale four days later. Last year, Herman served an NFL suspension in the season’s first two weeks. He joined the practice squad on Sept. 22 and was signed to the active roster on Dec. 2. Herman was inactive for the last four games of the season.
 
Criner last played a regular-season game in 2013, for Oakland. The Giants signed him to a reserve/future contract on Dec. 29.
 
Malone joined the team on the same day. He didn’t play in the NFL in 2014, but had punted for Detroit, Tampa Bay and the Jets from 2010-13.
 
Stanton was first signed by the Giants in 2014, and did a stint on the team’s practice squad last year.
 
Bamiro joined the Giants’ practice squad on Nov. 26, 2014, and was signed to a reserve/future contract by the team on Dec. 29. He spent the entire 2013 season on the Philadelphia Eagles’ practice squad.
 
Three of the players released today had joined the Giants since the start of training camp: Johnson on Aug. 2, Halley on Aug. 7 and Staten on Aug. 19.
 
Hunt was signed on May 7 and Tye on May 11.
 
The Giants will play their final preseason game Thursday night at New England. All teams must reduce their rosters to the regular-season limit of 53 players by 4 p.m. Saturday.
 
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*Wide receiver Victor Cruz (calf), defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins (hamstring), safety Jeromy Miles (groin), linebacker Jon Beason (knee), and cornerbacks Chykie Brown (knee) and Chandler Fenner (hamstring) did not practice.
 
Tom Coughlin said he had no update on Cruz other than, “He’s not going to play in the (New England) game.”
*Beason, who was hurt in the preseason game vs. Jacksonville on Aug. 22, was working on the side.
“He feels better,” Coughlin said. “Yeah, he feels better. He’s got a routine now, and they get a little bit more aggressive each day with it. So he’s optimistic, let’s put it that way.”
*Rookie offensive lineman Bobby Hart returned to practice after sitting out yesterday. He suffered a knee injury last Saturday vs. the Jets.
*Coughlin said the starters will play “very little” against the Patriots. Eli Manning expects that to be one or two series.