Peter Solari Follow @4PeteSakeNY
With all the turmoil surrounding the New York Giants recently, it was kind of odd how nobody had seen or heard from the team's general manager, you know, the guy who built these underachieving teams, until today.
At a meeting with the media earlier today, Reese took full responsibility for the holes in the Giants' roster (as if anyone else was to blame). He then preceded to remind the press that the team's struggles are everyone else's fault, too. I'll give everyone a second to have a good chuckle at that one.
Reese basically passed the buck on his dismal record at the NFL Draft. He shrugged it off and told the press, "You always miss on some draft picks."
Some, Jerry? You've been the GM since 2007, and in that span, only two of your number one picks, Odell Beckham Jr. and Jason Pierre-Paul, have ever been elected to a Pro Bowl. of those two, only Beckham could be considered a star in the NFL. Pierre-Paul showed signs of dominance early, but since 2011, he's leveled off and has turned out to be nothing more than an average NFL defensive lineman. And, of course, there was that whole Independence Day fireworks incident.
Whatever happened to Reese draft picks like Aaron Ross, Kenny Phillips, and David Wilson? They're all out of the league today. What happened to Prince Amukamara, another great Reese pick, who although is serviceable when healthy, has had a tough time staying on the field, and even when he's out there, he's not the dominant defensive back that Reese envisioned when he drafted him.
Reese, on the other hand, does deserve some credit for Beckham flying under the radar and falling into his lap on draft night, I suppose, but that doesn't make up for all the blunders along the way.
Early on in his tenure, praise was showered on Reese for his ability to find "diamonds in the rough" in the later rounds of the draft. For example, Reese drafted running backs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw in later rounds. Those two were big pieces on a couple of Super Bowl winners, but that says more about the coach, Tom Coughlin, than it does the GM. Coughlin is the one who made those guys who they were. That much is glaringly obvious. When those two guys left the Giants, they slipped into obscurity, but under Coughlin, they were starting running backs on a championship squad. The same can be said for other Reese picks. Steve Smith (not the current Raven/former Panther) comes to mind. He was a record-setting, Pro Bowl receiver under Coughlin. He left the Giants, and hasn't been heard from since. The point being: perhaps Reese hasn't been great drafter, and Coughlin just got the most out of what he was given to work with.
Then there are Reese's famous "project" picks to consider. These are the guys who have raw athletic ability that needs to be honed. Reese loves these guys because athletic ability is not something that can be taught, but football is. Pierre-Paul falls into this category, and while he's been an overall success (he is a starting D-end in the NFL after all), one could certainly make the argument that the Giants shouldn't have wasted a first round pick on him. However, it's guys like Ramses Barden, the next Plaxico Burress, or Adrien Robinson, the next Antonio Gates, who better exemplify this. Reese wasted a third and fourth rounder on those two picks, and they gave the team nothing in return. Neither one of them is still in the league.
Finally, let's talk about the holes on the Giants, that Reese has let fester for years. This team hasn't had a competent linebacking corps, or a consistent tight end in the vast majority of Reese's tenure. Nobody is saying that building an NFL team is easy, but there needs to be some kind of effort put forth, doesn't there? Reese has ignored these problems with the Giants for the better part of a decade, and left his coach to figure it out. In terms of the tight end position, Coughlin has thrived, getting production from multiple players in that span. He even won two Super Bowls with them, but the fact remains. The front office gave Coughlin virtually no support in those areas, for a very long time.
If you think this was a "hit piece" on Jerry Reese, you are correct. I've posted multiple pieces in the past couple of weeks, calling for the general manager's firing, but I haven't expanded on it. When I read his comments to the press today, I thought it was time to take him to task. The very fact that Reese has been in hiding since the Giants were eliminated from playoff contention, is slimy enough. He could have at least given Coughlin a nod of support. But Reese coming out today, and passing the responsibility for his failures on to others, is sinking to a new low.
Bottom line: Reese's record as general manager of the Giants has been abysmal. He's been able to skate by because his future Hall of Fame coach was able to get the most out of the inferior players he was given.
The Giants were certainly justified in replacing Coughlin, but how Reese continues to escape any consequences, is one of life's great mysteries.
