GIANT NOTES
With one eye on today and another firmly on the future, the Giants yesterday signed Barrett Brooks, a 30-year old offensive tackle who has started 62 games in the NFL and could be a part of the team’s plans next season.
Brooks adds experienced depth for the final two games, but more importantly he provides insurance for the Giants. Their two starting tackles, Luke Petitgout and Mike Rosenthal, both are set to become unrestricted free agents. By signing the 6-4, 326-pound Brooks now, the Giants can land him next season and be charged only $450,000 against the 2003 salary cap.
Brooks played two games this season for the Packers and was waived on Dec. 9. He was out of football in 2001; before that he spent four years with the Eagles and two with the Lions. He was a second-round draft pick of the Eagles in 1995.
To make room for Brooks on the roster, the Giants put running back Damon Washington on injured reserve. The team also signed receiver Chris Taylor to the practice squad, replacing linebacker Brad Rice.
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The 1,852 consecutive passes Kerry Collins threw for the Giants is an NFL record, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Collins threw every regular-season pass for the Giants from Nov. 21, 1999 until Sunday, when he was replaced by Jesse Palmer in the fourth quarter of a 37-7 victory over the Cowboys. The Giants this weekend face the new leader, Indy’s Peyton Manning, who has thrown 581 consecutive passes for the Colts.
Collins was named the winner of the second annual George Young Good Guy Award by the Giants chapter of the Professional Football Writers of America. The award, named for the late Giants GM, honors a player for consistent cooperation with the reporters who cover the team. S Shaun Williams and TE Dan Campbell were finalists.