John Mara: "I had a couple of long conversations with Jeremy this spring and summer. From those conversations, it was apparent to me that a fresh start was the best thing for us and for Jeremy."
READ BETWEEN THE LINES, the Giants wanted him because they were better WITH HIM. This was not their choice or their thinking that they were better without him. Their hand was forced.
NEXT. If the Giants are healthy, they can get the job done without Shockey. Gilbride you nitwit, wake up and USE your weapons. Spags had four tremendous pass rushers, he found ways to get ALL going north to the QB and (use Kiwi and Tuck for) wreaking havoc on guards and centers. With Gilbride we have Shockey in on every down... blocking. OMFG.
There once was a time when the Giants drafted a rookie phenom in the first round who immediately turned heads when he hit the field. He too was filled with all kinds of energy, and physically was a man amongst boys. His name was LT. And Parcells (first as his defensive coordinator and then as head coach) knew how to manage the man-child. Let him do what he did best. Give him his own set of rules. Keep him happy. Make no mistake, LT was a rogue too. Just like Shockey, LT was a party animal with the same unbounded energy. The only difference is that Parcells let his rogue sleep through meetings, and (for better AND for worse) looked the other way at times when it came to LT's drug use.
IS SHOCKEY A PEA BRAIN? Absolutely! He was unhappy because he felt he was being impeded FROM HELPING THIS TEAM. He simply needed coaches that could communicate with him and figure out ways to make him happy. They all knew the team was far stronger with this ballistic missile pointed at the opponents. By the end, he was pointed at the gmen and he had to go. This was NOT Shockey's fault. It was Coughlin and (specifically) Gilbride's. I have said it here before and I will say it again.. when you get a Maserati you do not put it in midtown traffic to collect fares. This was a wasted asset, plain and simple. (Ultimatenyg pointed out the day after he went down with a broken leg that the Giants would NOT miss Shockey because he already was being so underutilized that it did not matter. Sad indeed.) Smarter athletes would have channeled their drives to suit the needs of the team. In fact, the way I saw 2007, with how Shockey was a model citizen and on-field TEAM player, how could you complain? So the facts here are that he is gone and that we should stop looking just at Shockey and more at the Giants organization for why this failed. You get a player with his skills once or twice a generation, they often come with some asterisks, and if you can manage the asterisks you can win championships on their shoulders.
Gilbride still mismanages his talent. Try using Boss in pass patterns more if his hands are much better than his blocking. Get Bradshaw on the field more. Run him on screens in open space. (Despite Strahan and Umenyoira starting at DE) Spags found ways to get Tuck on the field all the time. So when we won the SB and everyone was talking up Spags for a head coaching job and no one was talking up Gilbride, were you surprised? When it came to this, that Shockey had to be traded, it should not have been a total surprise.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Jeremy Shockey traded to the New Orleans Saints, Part 2
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This was Shockey:
Early in a playoff game against the 49ers, he tossed a cup of ice water behind him into the stands after hearing heckling from spectators; he hit a young fan in the face.
Later, he dropped what should have been an easy scoring pass that would have given the Giants a 42-14 lead in a game they went on to lose, 39-38, one of the worst collapses in NFL history.
That was Shockey. Inspire the team and its fans with talent and tenacity, let them down with immature behavior and a maddening inability to complete a basic job requirement: securing a forward pass.
Yup, fans sure did love Shockey, for his flowing locks and gossip page exploits and rebel's approach to sports and life.
He even was a favorite of Wellington Mara, visiting his home the day before the beloved owner died three years ago.
But unlike Mickey Mantle, Joe Namath, Walt Frazier, Lawrence Taylor, and other charismatic men in the Big Apple, Shockey in the end was exposed for what he was: an intriguing, engaging, ultimately superfluous figure when it came to winning a championship.
Some predicted trouble from the start because he was not the Giants' kind of guy. That's laughable, of course, because the best player in the history of this franchise made Shockey look like a boy scout.
But let's put it this way: LT would have caught that pass in the end zone in San Francisco if asked, then would have snapped Jeff Garcia in two just to make sure there would be no comeback.
yes, he was a pea brain.
Shockey did not lose us the SF game in 2003. Fassel was up 38-14, and when a head coach is up by 24 points and loses the game, it is the head coach's fault, NO ONE ELSES. Your offense can score 38 points in 43 minutes and then you put the brakes on thinking it is over? Like I say in the rules, players are told to play for 60 minutes, but what happens when the coach only coaches for 50? A year later he blew 2 or 3 more inexcusable games, and he was gone. That loss had zero to do with Shockey dropping a ball, Holmes getting hurt in Q3, the bad snap by Junkin, the missed penalty on Seubert, it had everything to do with Fassel turning off the engine that could have scored 60 points that day had Fassel not turned off the engine in Q3. Thank goodness for Super Bowl XLII exorcising that collapse.
Sure, Shockey dropped a lot of key passes. He's also made some great plays and could have completely changed the face of this offense. Andy is right, the only reason Shockey wanted to be traded at all is that Gilbride did not properly use him. Shockey doesn't like to block, plain and simple. It's just not fun for him. And I remember a time, just two years ago, when Shockey was known as a terrible blocker anyway. I understand that he improved his blocking last offseason, but I think that it's funny that his own hard work is what ultimately got him traded from this team.
The Giants' organization should be ashamed of themselves for letting a talent like Shockey get away. Especially to a team in the conference who already had enough offensive weapons to throw 30 points on the board every week.
The Saints are going to be scary good next year. Congratulations Kevin Gilbride, Tom Coughlin and Jerry Reese, you just won the NFC South.
Andy & Daniel...
Yes I agree with all your points and they are very well taken. I had always been in Shockey's corner and was hoping that they could work out their differences.
Yes Andy, Shockey did not lose that game as we all know, I was just trying to make a point that Shockey is a "ME" kind of player and you agree that football is a "TEAM" game. ( You are one of the most passionate fans I have seen judging by your Blog )
But, Shockey is not a team guy!
The earliest indication of that was when he refused to attend every mini camp and stay in Florida to get in shape for the season. ( It especially irked me that he would never develop that chemistry with Eli because of that )
It is unfortunate and the Giants will not be as good this year because opposing Defenses will not have to worry about game planning for him.
In the long run it just might be better because HE DIDN'T WANT TO BE HERE! ( Yes Daniel, that was partially due to Gilbrides misuse of him ) and if a player doesn't want to be here then he must go.
We will be a different team this year offensively, but with a little luck and some developing players such as Steve Smith & Ahmad Bradshaw....and maybe we have a jewel in Mario Manningham? Our offense will be a little more wide open.
I hope so....
Who knows?
But that is the difference with us fans! We have the passion always for our team. That is why we are discussing this now.
I will always "BLEED BLUE" as will Andy & Daniel!
Anyway, I will be up at Albany on Friday as I always am for the first practice of the new season.
Hope to see you guys there!
shockey forced the giants hand as he did not want to be a giant anymore, so getting a 2nd and 5th was fairly decent. hopefully, reese will turn this into gold; he does seem to have the midas touch.
as far as the giants being a better team, they are not. he was the only giants offensive pro-bowler on the team. (yes, toomer got ripped off in 2002--why the hell is the voting after 14 games instead of the entire season, that's plain stupid!)
it's not that shockey doesn't like to block--he does like to mix it up inside--it's that he wants to be split wide more often. and i agree that he should have and payton and fassel did. btw, the giants avg-gain-per-rush was better with shockey in the game than w/o as much for his blocking as his passing threat.
lastly, i was to comment on terrible crap all the ny media gave shockey. they pounded him on everything, especially how the giants are a better team w/o him. they had much to do with creating problems and making shockey feel unwanted and unneeded. jerks!!!
Reese did a good job. As I stated earlier, I would have been satisfied with a number 2 pick. Now we have a 2 and a 5. If Mr. Reese's picks this year r anywhere near as good as last years, the race will be fun for the Giants. Not only do we get these draft picks but we have Shockeys salary to play with.
we all bleed blue. Shockey did too. When I was in college one of the guys in my house was a flake, a free spirit, and it took me YEARS to understand him, to know what made him tick. He did not communicate his priorities to people the way normal people do, so he was simply MISUNDERSTOOD. I truly believe Shockey was misunderstood. I see so many similarities. There is a story of how Miami was driving down the field and needed an important score to go ahead and win an important game. (I don't know all the details, it was shared with me by Marvelous.) Anyway, Shockey is in the huddle and he demands the ball be thrown to him. They threw the ball to him, he caught it, and they won the game. Is it schoolyard? Is it selfish? Is he the alpha-male who wants the ball because he sincerely believes he is the best player on the field? ANSWER IS ALL OF THE ABOVE. Everyone understands his telent, all I am contending is that I see less selfishness and more passion than others. And trust me, I hate selfish players as much as anybody. This chapter is closed, NEXT. Let's get on with camp, win this year and draft more of that steak in round 2.
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