The New York Giants could have as many as 19 returning starters when the NFL season opens, but there are two rookies and two second-year players trying to earn their spots this summer.

Here’s a starting-lineup projection entering training camp:

Offense

Quarterback (Eli Manning): His job isn’t in jeopardy, even though the Giants drafted a quarterback in the third round. Manning had a down year in 2016 (26 touchdowns, 23 turnovers). But with improved weapons, there is hope this will be a bounce-back season.

Running back (Paul Perkins): The second-year back already has been anointed the starter. The elusiveness and versatility he showed during a rookie campaign when he averaged 4.1 yards per carry earned him the opportunity to be the lead back.

Wide receiver (Odell Beckham Jr.): The 24-year-old is one of the NFL’s biggest stars. He has had at least 90 catches, 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns in each of his first three professional seasons — the only player in NFL history to accomplish the feat. Now he needs to show that productivity in the postseason while playing for a new contract.

Wide receiver (Brandon Marshall): The tall, powerful receiver was signed this offseason as a complement to Beckham. The Giants hope they’re getting the five-time Pro Bowler, not the 2016 version of Marshall who struggled with injuries and inconsistency.

Wide receiver (Sterling Shepard): He’s looking to build off a strong maiden season during which he was second among rookies with eight touchdowns. Shepard had a strong spring, and his goal is to be more dynamic this season after the catch.

Tight end (Evan Engram): The first-round pick adds a new dimension to the offense with his speed and ability to open up the middle of the field. But Engram’s blocking will ultimately determine just how often he’s on the field and whether he immediately earns a starting spot. Rhett Ellison could end up starting due to his blocking ability.

Free safety (Darian Thompson): This is one of the few defensive positions up for grabs. Safeties coach David Merritt said as much last month. Thompson missed all but two games last season, and undrafted rookie Andrew Adams filled in admirably. The two will compete for the starting spot this summer, but Thompson enters as the favorite with his foot healthy. He blew away the team last spring/summer with his smarts and instincts.

Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Adam Jones has been suspended for the 2017 season opener for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy, the league announced Friday.

Jones’ suspension stems from his January arrest at a hotel in downtown Cincinnati. He allegedly pushed a security guard, poked him in the eye and refused to comply with law enforcement officers.

He had faced misdemeanor charges of assault, disorderly conduct and obstructing official business and a felony count of harassment with a bodily substance for allegedly spitting on a nurse in jail, but most of the charges were dropped at the request of a Cincinnati prosecutor, who said the incident was just “drunken foolishness.”

Jones pleaded guilty in May to the obstruction charge. He was sentenced to two days in jail, which had already been served.

The NFL told Jones in a letter that it watched video “of the tone, tenor and nature of your interactions with law enforcement at the site of your arrest, during transportation to the jail, and during the booking process.” The league also said his actions reflected poorly on him, his family, the Bengals and the NFL.

“While it is our understanding that appropriate apologies have been publicly extended, they do not completely negate your behavior and admission of culpability for the underlying conduct,” the NFL wrote.

In a statement, the Bengals said they had anticipated the suspension and were looking to move on.

“Our focus is on getting ready for the upcoming season,” the Bengals said. “Adam will participate in training camp, and we are counting on him to help our team when he returns from suspension.”

The Bengals host the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1, and Jones would be allowed on Cincinnati’s active roster the day after the game. He will be allowed to participate in preseason practices and games.

LOVELOCK, Nev. — Former football star and convicted felon O.J. Simpson is appearing before a parole board Thursday, pleading for his freedom on live TV.

Simpson was convicted in 2008 of an armed robbery involving two sports memorabilia dealers in a Las Vegas hotel room. The 70-year-old is asking the parole board to release him in October after serving the minimum nine years of a 33-year sentence.

He is seated at a plain wooden table and is appearing before the parole board from Lovelock Correctional Center via closed-circuit video. Appearing as inmate No. 1027820, Simpson is being accompanied by lawyer Malcolm LaVergne, prison caseworker Marc La Fleur, close friend Tom Scotto, sister Shirley Baker and daughter Arnelle Simpson.

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  Follow along as O.J. Simpson, who has spent the last eight years in a Nevada prison, hears whether he will be granted parole.

The Kirk Cousins saga was briefly interrupted Monday when he and the Washington Redskins failed to strike a long-term deal. Barring the unlikely scenario of an in-season trade, the dance will resume in the offseason, with Cousins hitting free agency a strong possibility. Unless, of course, there’s another tag placed on him.

The lesson Washington must learn: If you truly want a player to re-sign, don’t wait until late in the game to make what would have been a strong offer a few months earlier. Cousins did debate countering but in the end he said he wanted to see how this season goes because of numerous changes to the organization.

Here are the four options in 2018 and, based on talking to numerous people, why they do or don’t make sense:

A third franchise tag: This would cost $34.5 million, which likely makes this an unrealistic scenario. The benefit, though, is that the Redskins would control his rights. If the Redskins feel there’s any shot at retaining him, they could tag him and negotiate without any future tag numbers impacting their talks, as has been the case. But if they don’t strike a deal, it’ll be a costly maneuver.

Or, they could tag and trade him. Cousins would have to work out a long-term contract with another team. But if there’s no trade — and no long-term deal — the Redskins would be stuck with a hefty bill that, if the salary cap rises by $10 million or so, would occupy nearly 20 percent of the space. That’s bad business. They also have 11 other key starters or backups in the last year of their deal, so if Cousins played a third year under the tag it would cost them the ability to retain multiple players.

The transition tag: This would enable Washington, which would owe Cousins $28.7 million under the transition tag, to match any offer from other teams. But there’s a problem: The offer could be too tough to match. The Redskins will have plenty of cap space — overthecap.com projects them at $54 million — so they could absorb a massive first-year hit on a new deal. However, as noted in the franchise-tag section, it would prohibit the Redskins from re-signing some of their other players. San Francisco, in need of a long-term starting quarterback, projects to have around $49 million in cap space. Those numbers don’t include possible carryover space from 2017 or players who could be released.

The 49ers — or another team — could make a heavily front-loaded deal with a player opt-out clause for the second year, much like the deal Alex Mack signed three years ago when under the transition tag with Cleveland. A year later, he opted out and bolted. If the Redskins matched such an offer, they would do so knowing Cousins could simply leave in 2019. It becomes an expensive one-year rental. However, if he opted out and signed elsewhere, the Redskins would receive a compensatory draft pick. If they fail to match the original offer, they wouldn’t receive compensation. If Cousins doesn’t get the offer he wants, or from the team he wants, he could always sign the tag and do this dance all over again in 2019.