Giants News

"Terrell Thomas is used to being overshadowed. He was part of a defense at Southern Cal that featured five players who were drafted, three of them in the first round. Taken by the Giants with the 63rd pick, he was the seventh player from his team taken that day. When he finally landed with the Giants, he was again a bit of an afterthought; He wasn't the first-round pick like Kenny Phillips, and he didn't have the headline-inducing off-the-field troubles of third-rounder Mario Manningham."

"Kevin Gilbride could have closed up shop Saturday morning after wide receiver Mario Manningham and quarterback Andre Woodson left the Giants' rookie minicamp practice with injuries. Those were the only two drafted players on the offensive coordinator's side of the ball. Meanwhile, Steve Spagnuolo had his full complement of draft picks working in the final day of the camp. That included the first two selections, safety Kenny Phillips and cornerback Terrell Thomas. "They are pretty much every bit what we thought they were," said the defensive coordinator about the additions to his secondary. "They both were very productive guys who played at a high level of football. So right there we think that means a lot.""

"During this offseason, Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride made sure to call Jeremy Shockey to assure the absent tight end he's wanted and needed. Shockey's response was not made public. "It wouldn't be fair for me to divulge what was said by him," Gilbride said yesterday at rookie mini-camp. There is no doubt Shockey was feeling all sorts of swirling emotions after the Giants won the Super Bowl while he was sidelined with a broken leg. The team explored trading Shockey, but did not find a suitable offer. The company line from GM Jerry Reese and Tom Coughlin remains, "Jeremy is our starting tight end," but no one is giving assurances that Shockey is a happy camper or that he actually will be a camper at all this summer. "

"Kenny Phillips is sure he can handle what is required of him as a first-round draft pick of the Giants. He knows he must purchase doughnuts for the veterans during the season. "I can do doughnuts," Phillips said. He knows he will be asked (more like told) to sing the Miami fight song or some other ditty on the first day of training camp. "I think if I sound pretty good, they might not ask me to do it anymore," Phillips reasoned. He grimaced when informed he will be expected to take the defensive backs out to an expensive dinner. Then he brightened a bit when reminded that dinner will come only after he signs his first NFL contract. Of all the rookies at Giants Stadium for the two-day mini-camp, none looked the part quite like Phillips."

"Kevin Gilbride recently told Jeremy Shockey he wants him back as a featured part of his offense. But the Giants' offensive coordinator admitted he doesn't know if that will happen. "It's so nebulous right now, you just have no idea," Gilbride said. "Right now he's on our team. We're planning on him being there. He'll be one of the guys that we'll look to feature and one of the guys that we'll look to depend on. Hopefully he'll be here in good spirits and ready to do the things that we know he's capable of doing. But who knows? It's certainly beyond my hands." "

"Kenny Phillips never played football with Sean Taylor. And even though they were both safeties at the University of Miami, they'd never met. Yet there was a bond between them. And when Taylor was murdered last November, Phillips felt a loss. "It touched all of us," Phillips said. "We are a big family down there at the University of Miami. He was our brother and when we lost someone we were really sad." That's why when Phillips, the Giants' first-round draft pick, took the field for the Giants' rookie mini-camp this weekend, he was wearing No. 21. That may have been Tiki Barber's old number with the Giants, but it was also the number Taylor wore with the Washington Redskins. "

"For the first time in more than four months, Mario Manningham didn't have to worry about Wonderlic tests, drug tests or any of the controversies that have been swirling around him. He was out on the football field, doing what he does best. And he sounded very relieved. "

" Mario Manningham has given people a lot to talk about with all his off the field problems. On the field with the Giants for the first time today, the troubled third-round draft pick from Michigan showed flashes of why he might have been one of the biggest steals in the NFL Draft. Manningham caught a short pass in the morning workout, deked a defender, spun past another and jogged down the field with a flair that raised eyebrows at the Giants' minicamp for rookie and free agents."

"Before this spring is through, coach Tom Coughlin said he'll make sure to sit down for private conversations with all seven Giants draft picks. Prior to yesterday's start of the two-day rookie mini-camp, Coughlin showed some urgency by making sure he visited with Mario Manningham for what the young receiver called "a long talk." That won't be it as far as these chats. "I'm sure we will continue," Coughlin said. "

"Kenny Phillips said he figured all the telephone calls he had made to the Giants paid off when he spotted the blue practice jersey hanging in his locker Friday morning at Giants Stadium, and the No. 21 was on it. The number had been worn by running back Tiki Barber during a notable 10-year career with the Giants that ended in 2006. But that was not why Phillips lobbied so hard to get it. He wanted the number as a tribute to a ferocious safety who preceded him at the University of Miami — Sean Taylor, who wore No. 21 when he played for the Washington Redskins."

"There's a strong belief among those in the Giants New York Giants front office and coaching staff that first-round draft pick Kenny Phillips will challenge for playing time sooner rather than later. His first chance to make an impression comes today during the start of the two-day Giants rookie mini-camp at Giants Stadium."

"After helping pull off a Super Bowl upset for the ages, Eli Manning promised, "I'm going to Disneyland!" Wednesday, he finally did. Better late than never, Manning and his new wife, Abby, finally kept their date with Mickey Mouse and friends, as they took their ride down Main Street, USA, in Anaheim, Calif., in the traditional Super Bowl MVP parade. They were originally scheduled to take that ride in a 1958 baby blue Cadillac the day after Super Bowl XLII in February, but bad weather in the Phoenix area delayed their flight and caused a change in plans. "

"The trip home to Nigeria had been planned for months, every detail considered to prevent a hitch in their good intentions. On the first day of their charity mission, four N.F.L. players riding a bus on the way to meet Nigerian President Umaru Yar’Adua, were — bang! — broadsided by a truck. “It was really scary,” Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora said. For a moment, the players-turned-ambassadors could be forgiven for thinking they might have been better off staying home and sending a check."

"David Diehl proved last season he could make a capable left tackle. Now he's going to be paid like one, too. The Giants tore up Diehl's old contract a few weeks ago and doubled it by signing him to a six-year deal that could be worth as much as $31million. The 27-year-old is signed through the 2013 season and, if he plays left tackle that entire time, would average more than $5million per year."

"n a move that could be a precursor to re-signing perhaps their top offensive lineman - right guard Chris Snee - the Giants have rewarded left tackle David Diehl with a new contract, a rare move for a player who just two years ago was granted a lucrative extension. Diehl was in a unique position, as two years ago he signed a six-year, $15.5 million deal, fine money for a player who proved to be a sturdy and durable guard. "

"Most people, including his own players, rarely see Coughlin in anything less than full intensity. But those close to him have long said that the public image was only a partial reflection. To see the true Coughlin, watch him among friends and family, away from football. They said nothing of sound effects and charades. The makeover of Coughlin’s image has been stunning. A year ago, he had a tenuous hold on his job and was trying to unwind his reputation as a soulless disciplinarian. "

"Michael Strahan had something more important to do than go with the Giants to the White House on Wednesday - a trip to the Kentucky Derby. After attending the Playboy party Friday night, Strahan was interviewed on NBC's pre-Derby show Saturday. The defensive end reiterated what he recently told the Daily News' Gary Myers: He's undecided on retirement."

"The free-agent market is just about barren, the draft is over, but there are still many issues on the table with almost three months until training camp and exactly four months until the Giants open the season against the Redskins. So, here are my predictions and how they will be resolved. 1. It Would Be Shocking If Jeremy Is Traded The Saints last called the Giants on Saturday morning before the draft and stuck with their final offer: A second-round pick last week and a fifth-rounder in 2009. New Orleans did not call when it was on the clock in the second round before taking DB Tracy Porter from Indiana."

"One day last week, David Jacobs took out two measuring cups, put a pot on the stove at his home here and demonstrated how he used to turn raw powder into steroids. For more than a year, Jacobs operated a makeshift pharmaceutical lab out of his kitchen in his one-story suburban home... Jacobs, a former body builder, said he advised about 10 N.F.L. players on how to exploit loopholes in the league’s drug-testing program. One way, he said, was to have team doctors write them prescriptions for drugs that would mask steroid use."

"Shortly before they were honored as heroes by President Bush on the South Lawn of the White House on Wednesday, the Super Bowl champion Giants met some real-life heroes at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. "People called us the 'Road Warriors,' " Giants coach Tom Coughlin said, referring to the team's 11 straight victories away from Giants Stadium. "But we pale in comparison to the real warriors we visited today at Walter Reed.""

"Meeting President Bush and touring the White House were the thrill of a lifetime for Tom Coughlin and his champion Giants, but there was an even more memorable moment Wednesday. The team made a stop at Walter Reed Army Medical Center to visit injured solders and were escorted by Lt. Col. Greg Gadson, the injured Iraq war vet who gave a moving speech to the Giants the night before they won Super Bowl XLII. "That's a moment I'll always remember because they feel like my teammates," Gadson said of the big game. He also said his fellow soldiers and service members "were just ecstatic that the Giants came to visit." "

"Sinorice Moss figured to be the odd man out when the Giants drafted another receiver on Sunday. But the disappointing third-year pro warned everyone Tuesday not to count him out."

"The selection of safety Kenny Phillips in the first round has a direct bearing on incumbent starter James Butler. The pickup in the third round of receiver Mario Manningham can be seen as a knock on third-year Sinorice Moss."

"The 2008 Giants draft list contains seven names and no one can be sure if it's a class to remember or forget. Still, it is not too soon to already stamp the Giants as big winners after this weekend's talent grab-bag simply because they did not trade away Jeremy Shockey ."

"Mario Manninghame is a "good person" who has made some bad mistakes, but his former college coach believes the newest Giants receiver is determined to turn around his life and his career."

"After adding seven draft picks to a roster already well-stocked off a Super Bowl triumph, the Giants knew they did not need to sign as many undrafted free agents as they normally do. Of the 12 players they are expected to bring in, one, Nate Robinson, is a prospect with local ties."

"Manningham, a talented wide receiver from Michigan, delivered those words four times in a seven-minute conference call Sunday after the Giants took a chance on him with the last pick of the N.F.L. draft’s third round."

"Giants GM Jerry Reese was eager to extol the physical virtues of Mario Manningham, the receiver from Michigan selected by Big Blue yesterday in the third round of the NFL Draft."

"The Giants GM took a risk by selecting Michigan receiver Mario Manningham with the No .95 pick. He's a big-play receiver with first-round talent, but his failure to admit past drug problems and a reported score of 6 on the Wonderlic intelligence exam raised serious questions about his head."

"Because the NFL opted to begin its draft at 3 p.m. Saturday instead of noon, only two rounds were completed. The Post looks at the most impressive picks from Day 2. Both the Jets and Giants made the list and former Jets and Giants coach Bill Parcells, who did a great job in the first two rounds for the Dolphins, kept it going."

"So the Giants, with the final pick of the first round at 31st over all instead of 32nd, got exactly what they needed, and wanted, in safety Kenny Phillips."

"Sometimes a team makes a pick in the first round of the NFL Draft that triggers all sorts of wonderment and surprise. That was not the case yesterday, as the Super Bowl champion Giants did the expected by selecting Miami safety Kenny Phillips with the 31st overall selection. They also, despite much pre-draft hubbub, did not trade away tight end Jeremy Shockey . "

"Jeremy Shockey is still a Giant. And now Kenny Phillips is, too. The Super Bowl champs filled a glaring hole in their defense Saturday night when they took Phillips, a safety out of the University of Miami, with the final pick of the first round of the NFL draft. That turned out to be their biggest move on a day when they were one of the few NFL teams who did not make a deal."

"Michael Strahan may be "stressing" out, as he said Saturday, over his decision whether to return to the Giants in 2008, but there is no doubt in his mind he wants Jeremy Shockey on the team."

"Jeremy Shockey is not a saint. Well, no kidding. The talented but controversial tight end has a better chance of being Cantonized than canonized. But the big news today is that he's not a Saint with a capital S, as in a member of the team from New Orleans that was trying to pry him away from the Giants for several weeks."

"The Giants wanted a second-round pick and then some. The Saints weren't willing to go that high. A league source familiar with the Giants' situation described the Saints' pursuit of Shockey as "not very hard." In the end, Reese stood pat because the value just wasn't there."

"Day One of the NFL draft came and went, but Jeremy Shockey didn't go anywhere. Shockey is still a Giant."

"As it turned out, the Saints didn't do anything shocking on draft day. Despite numerous reports the past few months that the Saints were interested in trading for New York Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey, the deal didn't happen. And chances are, it won't. "

"Soon the Giants will be closer to next season than last season. Even now, it is hard to imagine that nearly three months have passed since Eli Manning made those passes and David Tyree and Steve Smith and Plaxico Burress made their catches and then Tom Brady and Randy Moss couldn't make a miracle when they got the ball back."

"Widely regarded as the top safety in the nation. Three-year starter for the Hurricanes who entered the draft after his junior year. Excellent athlete with superior coverage skills."

"Former Giants offensive coordinator Sean Payton has made no secret of his desire to be reunited with Jeremy Shockey. The only question now is this: How much is the reunion worth to him?"

" To that end, this draft for the Giants is mostly about adding depth and deciding what becomes of tight end Jeremy Shockey. The Giants have not actively shopped him, but there's no doubt interest is coming at them, mostly from the Saints and New Orleans coach Sean Payton, the Giants' former offensive coordinator who covets his former player, and that the Giants would deal Shockey for the right price. "

"There is "a good chance" that Jeremy Shockey will be part of a trade that ends his tenure with the Giants on Saturday, according to a league source familiar with the team's situation. The Saints remain the most likely suitor for the tight end in a draft-day deal, with growing interest from the Falcons among others."

"But until the last name is called, the uncertainty will continue, exacerbated by last-minute reports like the one that surfaced late Thursday night that the Saints were offering starting left offensive tackle Jammal Brown to the St. Louis Rams as part of a package to move up to the No. 2 spot in the draft. New Orleans then could select LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey... The Saints could also pull off a draft-day deal to acquire disgruntled New York Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey, who reportedly has told the Giants he is no longer interested in playing there."

"The Giants look like they'll avoid a potentially ugly summer with Osi Umenyiora. There were whispers that the Giants' star defensive end was a candidate to be MIA for training camp thanks to his unhappiness with his contract. But yesterday, at an NFL Youth Festival at Central Park, Umenyiora declared he'll be in attendance and won't hold out. "

"There are times in an athlete's life when he must take the step forward or else get passed by, perhaps forever. That time has arrived for Gerris Wilkinson. Entering his third year with the Giants, the outside linebacker from Georgia Tech has frustrated himself, and at times the coaching staff, with his inability to secure more of a role on defense. Wilkinson was drafted in the third round in 2006 and at the time former general manager Ernie Accorsi said there was every reason to believe Wilkinson would be a starter before very long."

"With the 31st pick in the first round of the NFL Draft, the Super Bowl champion New York Giants select… Kenny Phillips, safety, University of Miami. And I’m pretty sure I’m right about that. OK, really, you can never be sure when it comes to the NFL draft because there is twice as much misinformation available as there is actual information. But that pick makes sense on so many levels and so many people have told me that he’s their guy that … well, I’ll be honest. I’m a little worried. But the Giants need a safety. He’s the best safety in the draft. "

"The Giants have plenty of issues to deal with between now and opening night, but Osi Umenyiora won't be one of them. The Pro Bowl defensive end, who admittedly was pondering a training camp holdout to force the Giants to give him a raise, announced Thursday that he'll be in camp on time this summer. That doesn't mean he's happy with the six-year, $41 million contract extension he signed in 2005, but he said, "Right now it's not the time for me to try and do anything crazy like that. "

"“I’d probably be a little stressed out,” Long said after the clinic. “It’s awesome because I just get to relax.” Meanwhile, other draft prospects will have to live with their stomachs in knots."

"Even with all that going on, and with the emergence of Kevin Boss who had 14 catches for 208 yards including the playoffs last season, the Giants weren't considering a trade until the New Orleans Saints called and offered a second-round pick. The Giants listened, and when word got out that Shockey was available, the Seahawks and others called, too."