

It’s been ten years since Jason Pierre-Paul lit that last firework. It was supposed to be a fun Fourth of July celebration in his South Florida neighborhood-a few fireworks, some laughs, nothing too serious. But the final batch wouldn’t light. When it finally did, it blew up in his hand.
The damage was immediate. Blood everywhere. He told the doctors not to amputate. They had no choice. He lost his right index finger and parts of two others. “I tell my kids all the time-ten fingers is a blessing,”Pierre-Paul says in a recent ESPN article. “You don’t get to replace them.”
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At the time, no one expected him to play football again, let alone return that same year. But JPP surprised everyone, suiting up for the Giants just months later. He called it pain management. Others called it miraculous.
There’s Nothing to Be Embarrassed About
Now 36, Pierre-Paul is still training daily. He’s not on a roster in 2025, but he hasn’t shut the door. He’s eyeing 100 career sacks-he sits at 94.5. If a team calls, he’ll be ready.
He speaks like a man who’s already won. And in many ways, he has. Two Super Bowl rings, one with the Giants in 2011, another with the Bucs in 2020. He even came back from a broken neck in 2019. But he also knows what it’s like to wake up wondering if your career-and your body-can keep up.
These days, he talks about purpose more than stats. He mentors young athletes. He does speaking engagements warning kids not to mess with fireworks. He stays in touch with others who’ve suffered similar accidents, like a relative of Marcus Peters.“I tell kids all the time-don’t put yourself in a situation you’ll regret. You don’t know what one moment can take from you.”
His kids-Josiah, Joline, Jacie, and Jason Jr.-don’t play with fireworks. “Not on my watch,” he laughs. “That part of my story stays with me, but it doesn’t define me.”
If he does get one more shot in the league, Pierre-Paul already knows where he’d like it to be: back with the Giants, where it all began. “To come full circle like that? Man, that would be dope.”
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