Michael Eisen has posted a really interesting Q&A with Giants GM Jerry Reese over at Giants.com
Here's a little snippet that gives you an idea why the Giants have been quiet since free agency began.
Reese: "We are excited about free agency. We have a game plan for free agency. Even though you have a plan going in and you would like everything to go according to your game plan, it doesn't go that way most of the time. So you have to have backup plans and if you don't get the first guy you like, you go to the second guy. If you don't get that, you don't start reaching for people. You might supplement with the draft, with your draft picks. So right now we have a game plan and we are working our way through that."
Q: The two general managers that you worked for here - George Young and Ernie Accorsi - believed in building a team through the draft and using free agency to supplement that process. Is that also your philosophy, to build through the draft first, or do you think you'll rely more heavily on acquiring veteran players?
Reese: "I think you have to use both of them equally. I don't think one weighs more than the other, because in different years there are players that fit what you need in free agency and then other years you don't have those players in free agency. Then you can supplement with the draft. So I think you have to use both of them equally - the draft and free agency. You have to play your hand with both sources."
Q: You said at your introductory news conference that you thought the Giants were good enough to still be playing in the playoffs. You mentioned the team had the talent to move beyond the first round. Having said that, is it safe to assume you believe the roster has a strong foundation and this offseason will be more of a retooling rather than a rebuilding?
Reese: "We have a great foundation. I felt strongly about that. At the end of the season last year, even with all of the injuries that we had, we still went into the game against the Eagles with a good enough team to win that game and go further into the playoffs. There was no question in my mind. Things didn't break our way, but our team was good enough to advance deeper into the playoffs. I think we had more talent on the team last year than the team we went to the Super Bowl with in 2000. So it does bother you that even though you know you have some injuries, your team is still strong enough, and you could be advancing deeper into the playoffs.
"So we are not rebuilding. We are just restructuring a little bit because we have a good core group and we just need to add to them. We will be fine as far as that goes. We are not rebuilding."
Gives you the strong impression that Reese likes the young players the Giants have and wants to give them the opportunity to step up.