Victor Cruz has already made it known he feels like he deserves a big payday after having a record-setting season while the New York Giants won the 2012 Super Bowl. During a conference call on Thursday Giants general manager Jerry Reese said he understands that Cruz, and others, will be looking to cash in on the team's success.
"That's a good problem to have. You win the Super Bowl and if everybody thinks they're the reason we won - that's a good problem to have. That means you won it," Reese said. "It's just part of the offseason. There are always contract issues in the offseason. That's what the offseason is. You have to deal with contracts and things with your roster - who's going to stay, who's going to go."
Reese said that tight ends Jake Ballard and Travis Beckum, who both tore ACLs during the Super Bowl, are "probably guys that will end up on PUP at the beginning of the season."
Reese added that "obviously we'll look in free agency and we'll look in the draft," but also said that Christian Hopkins, a player who spent the 2011 season on the Giants practice squad, will get a look at tight end as well. Before you scoff at that notion, remember that Ballard spent most of the 2010 season on the practice squad before emerging in 2011.
Reese, of course, was questioned before the season started when the Giants lost several players to free agency and injuries, and did not make any splashy moves to replace them. He was asked Thursday if there was a time during the season he thought he was 'doing things the right way.'
"We always try to do what's right for the New York Giants. We try to make good football decisions. It would be great to look like you're really smart in the offseason and go out and make a lot of splashy moves so you guys can write nice-going things about our personnel staff, but our goal is to make good football decisions and that's what we try to do every year," Reese said. "We don't just think about our personnel for the current year. We think a couple of years down the line and that's important. I think fans think about the here and now, what our team looks like now. We think about that as well, obviously, because you want to win every year, but we definitely think a couple of years down the road a little bit in respect to personnel."
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