Time might be running out on cornerback Sam Beal.

It’s increasingly possible the most difficult decision the Giants will have to make when cutting the roster from 90 to 53 players after the preseason will be whether to hang on to Beal or subject him to waivers.

Originally taken with a third-round pick in the 2018 NFL Supplemental Draft, Beal has made it through one padded practice in his 14 months with the Giants. Not a typo.

Beal was injured on the first day of training camp as a rookie and underwent season-ending shoulder surgery. He was a starter to open non-contact Organized Team Activities in the spring, bumped to No. 3 on the depth chart and then injured again during the second padded practice of training camp.

In practices since July 27, Beal either has been riding the exercise bike or stretching off to the side with trainers, as he was Tuesday. He is about to miss his seventh preseason game to go with 16 regular-season games, which makes an evaluation almost impossible because there is no tape to review.

“Yeah, you’re right,” coach Pat Shurmur said. “We’re just going to have to see where he is physically. We drafted him for a reason. We would like to see him be on our team. We’ll just see where he’s at, and then we’ll make a decision (on) the 53.”

Because Beal practiced in training camp, he is not eligible to begin the season on the Physically Unable to Perform list, which would force him out for the first six weeks of the regular season but open a roster spot to a teammate. If the Giants want to keep Beal, he has to be one of the initial 53.

From there, the Giants could move Beal to injured reserve, designate him for a possible return after Week 8 and fill the roster spot. But, given all his question marks and small body of work, there is no saying Beal will be the most prominent injury player the Giants want to get back from injury by then.

“It’s something we’re going to have to evaluate as we go forward,” Shurmur said. “He’s getting healthier by the day. It’s just unfortunate that we haven’t been able to see him do much. But, unfortunately, that’s the way it is sometimes.”

Beal, who felt like a “caged lion” last season, was not available for interview upon request this week.

Shurmur’s tune has changed a bit as Beal’s absence has continued. Shurmur previously thought it was a “day-to-day” injury and said on Aug. 5 that “he’ll just have to catch up quickly.”

Too late for that to happen. And now he has seen rookie Corey Ballentine and veteran Antonio Hamilton — both of whom started camp on the roster bubble — outperform realistic expectations. The Giants are expected to use Janoris Jenkins, DeAndre Baker and Grant Haley as their top three cornerbacks.

If Beal does not make the roster, it will be a zero return on a risky investment.

The Giants took a chance drafting Beal knowing he had a pre-existing shoulder injury from Western Michigan. They gave up their third-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft so he could contribute in 2018, which he did not after injury.

It took trading Odell Beckham in a 3-for-1 package to fill the void in the third round, and the Giants dropped from No. 70 overall (Beal) to No. 95 overall. Giants general manager Dave Gettleman still thought he made the right decision in the offseason, grading Beal as a second-rounder in 2019.

Others thought less highly of him, especially given the injury history.

What’s more? If the Giants do the expected and cut fourth-string quarterback Kyle Lauletta, it is possible two of Gettleman’s mid-round picks from his first two drafts won’t make it to a second season and will be off the team with two combined games played.

Carolina Panthers coach Ron Rivera used to warn Gettleman: Cutting players you selected is much more difficult than cutting players inherited. Gettleman has cleaned house in two years with the Giants.

“That turned out to be hard," Gettleman said last month, "but you have to do it.”

Ryan Dunleavy may be reached at rdunleavy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rydunleavy. Find our Giants coverage on Facebook.