Aug. 27 (Bloomberg) -- New York Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora had surgery to repair torn knee cartilage yesterday as retired former teammate Michael Strahan decided not to return to the National Football League team.

``The doctors were very pleased,'' Giants coach Tom Coughlin told reporters following Umenyiora's surgery to fix his lateral meniscus. ``The surgery went well. The knee looked good. The prognosis is very, very, good for a full recovery.''

After saying following the Aug. 23 preseason game injury that Umenyiora would miss the NFL season, Coughlin wouldn't elaborate on the timeframe for his return.

The team has yet to place him on its injured reserve list, which would prevent him from playing at any point this season, including the playoffs, and free up a roster spot for another player.

``That would be something that the doctor would have to have a great deal of input on because there wouldn't be sense in going that long and then not having him fully ready to go,'' Coughlin said.

Following Umenyiora's injury, the team moved Mathias Kiwanuka to defensive end from linebacker and contacted Strahan, who retired following 15 seasons as a Giants defensive end that included seven Pro Bowl selections.

Strahan told Fox Sports, for whom he will work as an NFL analyst this season, that the decision-making process caused him ``one of the toughest nights of my life.''

`A Million Scenarios'

``After long deliberation and throwing around a million scenarios in my head for the past day, I think it's just best if I stay retired,'' said Strahan, the NFL's single-season sack record holder.

Strahan, 37, retired in June after the team in February beat the New England Patriots 17-14 to win the Super Bowl title. Later that month, he joined News Corp.'s Fox Sports as an NFL analyst for the ``Fox NFL Sunday'' pregame show and Fox's postgame ``The OT.''

Strahan, who has already played in a franchise-record 216 regular-season games for the Giants, said he didn't want this season to turn into a farewell tour. He stepped down with a franchise-record 141 1/2 sacks, nine more than Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor and fifth on the league's all-time list.

In 2001, Strahan set a league record with 22 1/2 sacks. He also led the league in sacks in 2003, with 18 1/2.

The Giants start regular-season play on Sept. 4 against the Washington Redskins.

To contact the reporter on this story: Mason Levinson in New York at mlevinson@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 27, 2008 00:35 EDT