The first of the Giants’ four rookie draft picks agreed to terms on a contract yesterday when Brandon Jacobs, the massive running back from Southern Illinois, signed a four-year deal.
That means Jacobs will report to his first NFL training camp on time this Friday.
“The Giants treated him like someone who will contribute,” said Jacobs’ agent, Justin Schulman.
That comes as no great surprise, considering the Giants took Jacobs on the fourth round to fill their glaring need for a short-yardage power back.
Jacobs, at 6-4 and 256 pounds, certainly looks the part, and one of the more intriguing storylines at camp in Albany will be how Jacobs fares once the pads are on and the hitting commences.
With only four picks, the Giants will be extremely disappointed if they cannot get them all signed in time for Saturday’s first practice session. Ken Landphere, the agent for defensive end Justin Tuck – the Giants’ third-round pick out of Notre Dame – said, “It’s still up in the air,” when asked if Tuck will make it to camp on time.
“My feeling is this has been a slower-moving draft class than in the past,” Landphere said.
The trend this year for teams is to eschew the customary three-year deals for mid- to lower-level picks in favor of four- and at times five-year contracts, which stave off free agency and allow teams to retain the rights to players for a longer duration.
The Giants’ top draft pick, cornerback Corey Webster of LSU, taken in the second round, remains unsigned. The sixth-round pick, defensive end Eric Moore of Florida State, will be signed very soon.
“Could be today, could be tomorrow,” Moore’s agent, Adisa Bakari, said yesterday. “He’ll be there on time.”