During this offseason, Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride made sure to call Jeremy Shockey to assure the absent tight end he’s wanted and needed. Shockey’s response was not made public.
“It wouldn’t be fair for me to divulge what was said by him,” Gilbride said yesterday at rookie mini-camp.
There is no doubt Shockey was feeling all sorts of swirling emotions after the Giants won the Super Bowl while he was sidelined with a broken leg. The team explored trading Shockey, but did not find a suitable offer. The company line from GM Jerry Reese and Tom Coughlin remains, “Jeremy is our starting tight end,” but no one is giving assurances that Shockey is a happy camper or that he actually will be a camper at all this summer.
“I just told him I hope he comes back and I think his teammates and coaches all feel like I do, that we’ll be a better team because he’s here,” Gilbride said. “I just want to make sure he understood that. There’s a place for him here. As far as I’m concerned he’s an integral part of what we’re doing.”
It is not known if Shockey feels he’s an integral part of the offense, especially after watching Eli Manning blossom seemingly the moment after Shockey was injured and lost for the playoff run. Gilbride feels Manning’s emergence had nothing to do with Shockey’s exit and had plenty to do with the return to health of rookie receiver Steve Smith.
Clearly, there’s an air of uncertainty around Shockey.
“It’s so nebulous right now, you just have no idea what’s going to happen,” Gilbride said. “Right now, he’s on our team and we’re planning on him being there. He’ll be one of the guys we’ll look to feature and depend on. Hopefully, he’ll be here in good spirits and ready to do the things we know he’s capable of doing, but who knows?”
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Two draft picks went down in yesterday’s morning session. WR Mario Manningham strained his hip flexor while coming out of his break on a pass route, and QB Andre’ Woodson strained a quad muscle on a scramble. Both missed the afternoon workout. Coughlin used the injuries as a teaching point.
“We’ve had about four soft-tissue injuries that are going to be frustrating,” Coughlin said. “You have to work in the short bursts and the change of direction and all those kinds of things.”
P Owen Tolson (Army) was signed as an undrafted free agent. If he makes the roster, he will not have to fulfill his five-year military commitment, but he would have to serve as an Army recruiter in the New Jersey area to satisfy his service obligation. Of course, unless something happens to veteran Jeff Feagles, Tolson’s best chance is to land on the practice squad. If he is not in football, Tolson will head to El Paso to serve in air defense.
“It’s shooting down planes, helicopters and other missiles,” Tolson said. “It’s fun.”