CRUZ QUESTIONS
Victor isn’t happy about his role in Giants offense and plans to talk to McAdoo about it
THE DIVORCE of Victor Cruz and the Giants unofficially began when GM Jerry Reese drafted Sterling Shepard last spring. Reese hedged against the oft-injured Cruz possibly never returning to the field. If Cruz retired, Reese had insurance. If Cruz got healthy, the Giants would be rich at receiver.
No one could have predicted that Ben McAdoo and Eli Manning would squander the luxury of a healthy Cruz and flip their riches at receiver into an unresolvable burden; that McAdoo would never play Cruz at his best position, inside in the slot; and that Cruz’s improbable comeback would turn sour.
A fully-dressed Cruz stylishly fired out of the Giants’ Heinz Field locker room the second it opened to media on Sunday night, graciously agreeing to talk as he walked — as he always does — clearly frustrated with Manning not throwing a single pass his way.
“I’m going to talk to somebody,” said Cruz, who also played fewer snaps (26) than undrafted free agent Roger Lewis Jr (29). “Somebody’s got to give me an answer as to why.”
Cruz followed up on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football Monday that he was “a little angry” after the loss. He stressed, “I just want to go out there and contribute.” He said he intends to speak with McAdoo today as the Giants (8-4) review film of their 24-14 defeat to the Steelers before turning their attention to Sunday night’s MetLife showdown against the Dallas Cowboys.
“We’ll see how it goes tomorrow when I step into work and have a conversation with Coach Mac, which I plan on doing. And we’ll take it from there. But I’m not angry. I’m not a disgruntled employee,” Cruz said, reversing his route and parroting a line of questioning from ex-NFL wideout Nate Burleson. “I’m not like, ‘Screw this.’ I’m a team guy first, and I want to make sure that everybody’s interest is at heart.”
McAdoo, asked Monday afternoon about his failing three-receiver set, said in his weekly conference call: “I’m sure you’re referring to Victor’s comments. When you have been as inconsistent as we have on offense, it’s a challenge. Victor, like everybody else including myself, we want to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. So my door is always open for any of these guys that want to come in and have a conversation.”
Cruz doesn’t have to tell anyone he’s a team-first guy, though. He didn’t whine after seeing two offtarget passes from Manning in Green Bay in Week 5, even though the quarterback later said: “We have some guys having to play receiver who haven’t in a while and are going through a learning curve.”
Cruz was the only active receiver that week who fit Manning’s description. Cruz didn’t complain in Week 9 either, when McAdoo’s phase-out of him officially began after the bye. The rookie coach played Lewis Jr. ahead of Cruz often, even before an ankle injury sidelined Cruz for the rest of the Eagles game and the next week against the Bengals.
When Cruz returned, he saw just two targets against the Bears in Week 11 and five against the Browns in Week 12, a stretch of three straight games with only one catch. But at least they were all deep completions — 46 yards against the Eagles, 48 against the Bears, and 37 against the Browns. Cruz didn’t complain because he was chipping in and the Giants were winning.
“(At) times where we may stall out … I want to help and I want to contribute and I want to be that person to uplift us to get us going,” Cruz said Monday. Cruz is not without blame here for the lack of chemistry between him and Manning. Cruz incorrectly turned a deep route to the sideline in Cleveland, for example, a misread that turned a beautiful Manning deep ball into an incompletion. Sometimes he also is just not open.
But Manning looked off an open Cruz on one second-half play Sunday to throw elsewhere, other times he isn’t looking his way at all, and McAdoo is limiting Cruz’ playing time and opportunities.
Manning, in fairness, is forced to make chicken salad behind a poor offensive line with no running game and no top-tier tight end on the roster. Still, how has Cruz fallen so far off the radar?
Cruz caught the Giants’ game-winning touchdown in Dallas in Week 1. He snagged a difficult 50-50 ball in the red zone to bail out Odell Beckham Jr. for a huge drop in a Week 2 victory over the Saints.
Manning is making too many mistakes, and this offense is too predictable and inconsistent. Shepard had no targets in Cleveland. Cruz saw no passes against the Steelers. Manning’s second-quarter interception to Lawrence Timmons in the red zone basically decided Sunday’s game.
Cruz’s base salary rises from a renegotiated $2.4 million in 2016 to $6.4 million and $7.4 million, respectively, in the final two years of his current deal, per spotrac.com. So it was already likely this could be his final go-around with Big Blue. It’s just shocking how marginalized he has been in the game plan.
Think of this: Cruz, after climbing all the way back from two surgeries to resume his career, has yet to do his patented salsa dance at MetLife Stadium this season. He has scored only one TD.
He should bring that up when he meets with McAdoo with a smile on his face: Coach, we Giants could use a little salsa in our lives.