NEW ENGLAND CRUZ?
Patriots would make sense as landing spot for former Giant receiver
The Denver Broncos are showing interest in Victor Cruz, but there is another team that feels like a more natural fit as a one-year destination for the former Giant. You’ve probably already thought about it. You’re dreading reading the words in print. Too bad. Here it is: Cruz to the New England Patriots makes too much sense. Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the reigning Super Bowl LI champions are always reloading with slot receiver talent types, undersized wideouts, versatile players who can get open quickly over the middle. And that recipe, along with imposing tight ends and elusive, pass-catching running backs is how the Patriots offense annually is able to steadily and efficiently carve up defenses. The Giants and coach Ben McAdoo seemed totally flummoxed last season by the presence of rookie Sterling Shepard and a healthy Cruz, 30, both slot receivers by trade. McAdoo’s resolution was to play Shepard there the entire season, not fully utilizing Cruz’s greatest assets. In New England, though, the presence of slippery undersized wideouts Julian Edelman (5-10, 200 pounds) and Danny Amendola (5-11, 190) would not preclude Brady and the Pats from incorporating Cruz into the slot situationally and doing so effectively. Plus, Edelman, 30, and Amendola, 31, have injury histories and are older, so depth always is critical.
Cruz would be in a receiving corps also returning bigger 6-1 targets Chris Hogan and Malcolm Mitchell, but late signing Michael Floyd is due to hit free agency, and it’s not like Cruz didn’t prove in 2016 that he could make plays on the outside.
Cruz did not have a great season to be sure (39 catches, 586 yards, 1 TD), at least partially related to playing out of position and returning from two years off from football. But he made several tough, deep catches down the right sideline to give Eli Manning a vertical option, including longs of 40 yards in Week 2, 37 yards in Week 3, 46 yards in Week 9, 48 yards in Week 11 and 37 yards in Week 12.
Above all, Cruz played in 16 of a possible 17 games, proving he could stay healthy coming off a torn right patellar tendon in 2014 and calf surgery in 2015. Teams showing interest have to give Cruz the benefit of the doubt — early in camp, at least — that further distance from those injuries could raise his level even higher.
Cruz seems to know he’ll have to sign on the cheap wherever he lands, but while ESPN is reporting Denver’s interest, I’m not sure if I see Cruz straying dramatically from the Big Apple. He has a bright future in a lot of high-profile arenas, including in the media if he wishes, and in the fashion world, too. And straying too far from New York, and his family in the area, wouldn’t seem to be the ideal business or personal choice.
That said, the Broncos are intriguing because John Elway’s club won the Super Bowl two years ago, still has a formidable defense, and might be able to offer Cruz more regular playing time to complement big No. 1 wideout Demaryius Thomas and the undersized-yet-versatile and dangerous Emmanuel Sanders.
And if Denver were to go out and make a spalsh and trade with Dallas for Tony Romo, a one-year experiment with that kind of star power and adrenaline might be too tempting to pass up.
Still, Cruz should remember in this recruiting period that Elway doesn’t play QB in Denver anymore and neither does Peyton Manning. If it’s Trevor Siemian or Paxton Lynch, that can’t be Cruz’s first choice.
Now a qualifier is that Cruz is not afraid to speak his mind politically. As a Giant in December, he was vocal about his disgust with the racist message, impact and reflections of President Donald Trump’s administration. And there were photos of Elway attending Trump’s inauguration ceremony, not to mention pictures of Patriots owner Robert Kraft dining with Trump in Florida last week.
Still, if Cruz helped Brady win the quarterback’s sixth Super Bowl next February, he wouldn’t have to visit the White House. And who knows if Trump still would be President Fthen anyway? (Come on, stick to sports, Pat). ootball-wise, Cruz’s priority in his free agent search should be to find a team that will find a regular place for him on the field, get him to his second Super Bowl before his career runs out, and keep him close and connected to his next career.
It’s tough to argue the Patriots aren’t that team.