We are 80 days away from the start of the season, and I’m thinking of Victor Cruz today. What an absolute find he was, and how much it sucks we only got to see him for a short window. We may gripe and complain about the roster now with good reason, but there was a time Cruz made the Giants must-see tv. Saluting Victor Cruz today, a humble guy who seems to still be about the Giants. Miss seeing this guy play.
CRUUUZZZZZ - (
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It felt like a curse with our WR/TE starting back in 2008. Plax, Smith, Boss, Nicks, Cruz, Ballard.
And honestly the same with Shepard. Excellent when he plays, but never plays for long
Eli to Cruz combo was on fire with great catches all over the middle of the field and giving their defense fits.
Maybe the Giants wouldn’t have made the playoffs that year without Cruz.
That was a very dynamic offense in the pass game. Two outstanding WR's and a very capable third. Little like Cincy last year. Defense stepped up in the playoffs. Run game was poor.
TC always wanted balance. I think the Giants thinking they could replicate this style led to a lot of the decade issues we have had. Injury to a key weapon (or two) and your SOL.
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Maybe the Giants wouldn’t have made the playoffs that year without Cruz.
That Jets game with the 99 yard TD arguably saved the season
My man and the Salsa!!!
Amazing yet brief run for Cruz. And yes the SF game he was dominant.
But I've said it before and I'll say it again... Nicks was better.
Domenik Hixon: From waiver wire to starter, blows out both ACLs, never the same
Stephen Smith: Second coming of Jerry Rice, blows out his knee, never the same
Hakeem Nicks: Foot injury, never the same
Victor Cruz: Out of nowhere, becomes a sensation, gets hurt. never the same
Odell Beckham Jr: All-time great potential, multiple injuries, never the same, shipped out
Sterling Shepard: Every year he's the guy, can never finish a season
Kenny Golladay: Massive contract, hurt and ineffective
Kadarius Toney: Game breaker, hurts foot, shoulder, hamstring, obliques and gets Covid twice in 6 months.
That's 12 years of lost wide receivers, crazy 😱
Domenik Hixon: From waiver wire to starter, blows out both ACLs, never the same
Stephen Smith: Second coming of Jerry Rice, blows out his knee, never the same
Hakeem Nicks: Foot injury, never the same
Victor Cruz: Out of nowhere, becomes a sensation, gets hurt. never the same
Odell Beckham Jr: All-time great potential, multiple injuries, never the same, shipped out
Sterling Shepard: Every year he's the guy, can never finish a season
Kenny Golladay: Massive contract, hurt and ineffective
Kadarius Toney: Game breaker, hurts foot, shoulder, hamstring, obliques and gets Covid twice in 6 months.
That's 12 years of lost wide receivers, crazy 😱
Shit like this makes me wonder if there is a common denominator. Is WR just a cursed position for NYG? I believe most of these injuries happened when they played away correct? Cruz’s happened in Philly.
The injury in Philly was awful. A visibly distraught Cruz sitting in the end zone in pain while the Philly fan base cheered. Another reason to hate the Eagles.
That was a very dynamic offense in the pass game. Two outstanding WR's and a very capable third. Little like Cincy last year. Defense stepped up in the playoffs. Run game was poor.
TC always wanted balance. I think the Giants thinking they could replicate this style led to a lot of the decade issues we have had. Injury to a key weapon (or two) and your SOL.
Oline sucked ass too, although Cincy managed a decent run game statistically, so not sure how much of that is narrative.
Giants absolutely sucked and Eli had to carry that offense on his back.
We got extremely lucky (like any super bowl title team needs) but also extremely unlucky.
We kill Reese but i'm not sure any GM recovers when 7% of the hits he made in the draft were injured or out of football 5 years in to their respective career.
Kenny Philips was one of the best safety's in football and 2 years later he was DONE. TErrel Thomas. So many guys.
We're due some fucking good luck.
JPP is like the only guy, and he blew off his hand prior to the biggest "need" season of the 20-teens which all but torpedoed any chance of Coughlin returning (2015) and all but sealed Reese's fate once bozo took over. JPP doesn't get hurt, Coughlin doesn't lose 10 games that year and is back in 2016 with a real defense. Seismic shift in history all because JPP had to light off a fucking blockbuster.
Again, we're really due for a good decade of fortune. I think the NFL gods have gotten a few extra pounds of flesh from the NYG franchise. Maybe find another NFL team to fuck with and curse. TIA.
We got extremely lucky (like any super bowl title team needs) but also extremely unlucky.
We kill Reese but i'm not sure any GM recovers when 7% of the hits he made in the draft were injured or out of football 5 years in to their respective career.
Kenny Philips was one of the best safety's in football and 2 years later he was DONE. TErrel Thomas. So many guys.
We're due some fucking good luck.
T. Thomas was going to be a STAR. What a shame.
We got extremely lucky (like any super bowl title team needs) but also extremely unlucky.
We kill Reese but i'm not sure any GM recovers when 7% of the hits he made in the draft were injured or out of football 5 years in to their respective career.
Kenny Philips was one of the best safety's in football and 2 years later he was DONE. TErrel Thomas. So many guys.
We're due some fucking good luck.
No doubt they had a lot of really bad injury luck with perimeter players. The problem with Reese's back half is did not have the trenches overcome it.
The Giants 2010-13 WR corps was very inexpensive. Little reason to not have a high quality line with depth.
And releasing him.
This is always what I default to when people crush Reese for the things he didn't do correctly.
He landed multiple players that should have carried the flag for the franchise for a decade and they all had to retire early to injuries.
Domenik Hixon: From waiver wire to starter, blows out both ACLs, never the same
Stephen Smith: Second coming of Jerry Rice, blows out his knee, never the same
Hakeem Nicks: Foot injury, never the same
Victor Cruz: Out of nowhere, becomes a sensation, gets hurt. never the same
Odell Beckham Jr: All-time great potential, multiple injuries, never the same, shipped out
Sterling Shepard: Every year he's the guy, can never finish a season
Kenny Golladay: Massive contract, hurt and ineffective
Kadarius Toney: Game breaker, hurts foot, shoulder, hamstring, obliques and gets Covid twice in 6 months.
That's 12 years of lost wide receivers, crazy 😱
You forgot Golden Tate, oh wait....
JPP is like the only guy, and he blew off his hand prior to the biggest "need" season of the 20-teens which all but torpedoed any chance of Coughlin returning (2015) and all but sealed Reese's fate once bozo took over. JPP doesn't get hurt, Coughlin doesn't lose 10 games that year and is back in 2016 with a real defense. Seismic shift in history all because JPP had to light off a fucking blockbuster.
Again, we're really due for a good decade of fortune. I think the NFL gods have gotten a few extra pounds of flesh from the NYG franchise. Maybe find another NFL team to fuck with and curse. TIA.
i am in the camp that reese got too much blame.
But they were all great. Hell, I even loved Mario Manningham when he was getting so much sh*t from the fanbase for not always running the best route. If you rewatch the 2011 tape and all the comebacks during the regular season - just look at how big he came up in several 2 minute drives before the half. Deceptive wiggle and speed.
Cruz, he was just a magician that year. I remember a few stop on a dime and jump backwards plays to avoid would be tacklers and result in massive gains.
The 3 of them were great and probably will never be topped.
Then getting the best wr in the NFL outside of Antonio Brown and having him injured and shipped out of town. It's true... The giants have been snakebit at wr.
And thats without even discussing the gun incident of Plax that potentially cost us a back to back championship and losing a 100 catch wr in Smith before his career even took off.
Now, all eyes are on Toney... An electric skill set but needs to stay healthy and not play the back and forth game with the piranha Ny Media...
Can Kadarius Toney have the same production? KT seems to have the same physical attributes.