T-Rock's Take on the Giants

When Damontre Moore showed up at his new office earlier this week, there was a note waiting for him in his locker. It was from Justin Tuck. It said, simply: “I hope you are ready to work.”

Moore says that he is, despite criticism from Tom Coughlin at the time of his third-round selection that he was a strong player on Saturdays at Texas A&M but needed to improve his performances Monday...

Victor Cruz may not be with the Giants as of right now, but the receiver who ran opposite him at UMass is. Veteran receiver Jeremy Horne is one of the tryouts at this weekend’s rookie minicamp.

Like Cruz, Horne was an undrafted free agent in 2010 only he signed with the Chiefs. Cruz obviously signed with the Giants. That’s where their careers diverged.

And now they may be coming back...

These days there is very little in the way of negotiation when it comes to draft picks, particularly those beyond the first round. Usually the deals are in place when the players show up for rookie minicamp. For four of the seven Giants draft picks, that’s the case this year. The team officially signed second-round pick Johnathan Hankins, third-rounder Damontre Moore, fifth-rounder Cooper Taylor...

The most conspicuous player at the Giants’ rookie minicamp was the first round pick … of the Seahawks in 2009.

Aaron Curry, once the fourth overall selection in the draft and now a free agent with questionable knees, was one of the spectators at the first practice of the camp. He spent most of the time watching from the sidelines and spending time watching the linebackers.

While the...

Chad Jones is switching to his backup plan.

The former Giants safety who was selected in the third round of the 2010 draft and nearly killed in a horrific auto accident two months later is giving up on a return to football and instead will focus on making it to the big leagues in baseball. Jones was a star pitcher for LSU and was drafted by the Astros out of high school and the Brewers out...

Victor Cruz has yet to sign with the Giants, but John Mara thinks it’s just a matter of time before the two sides agree to a new contract.

“I’m pretty confident we will end up reaching a deal with him,” the Giants’ president and CEO said on NFL Network on Tuesday. “This is not an atypical situation. Player contracts, particularly with star players, can tend to drag on from time to time. I...

It hasn’t been a very good month for David Diehl. First he had to take a substantial pay cut to stick with the Giants for (presumably) one more year. Then the team went and drafted two offensive linemen. And oh, by the way, the head coach said that the first-round draft pick, Justin Pugh, will start out playing the same position that Diehl was lightly penciled into – right tackle.

The soon-to-be...

Chris Snee wants to say one word to Justin Pugh. Just one word. Is he listening?

One word: Plastics.

No, it’s not a recreation of the famous scene from “The Graduate.” In fact, it has more to do with being a freshman than being a graduate. Because Snee and others plan on dipping into Pugh’s first-round draft pick spoils.

“Pugh, if you are reading this, get a credit card,” Snee...

A week ago, John Mara urged patience and said that be believed a deal with Victor Cruz would get done eventually. But who was he telling to be patient? The media – present company included – who have been asking everyone associated with the team and the player about the situation for months? The fans, who have been clamoring for the return of the popular wide receiver?

Or maybe … his own head...

The Giants have had a pretty good run with their first-round picks in recent years. Not all of the players they have taken have become All-Pros and future Hall of Famers, but there hasn’t been a real stinker in a while. You have to go back to 2003 and William Joseph to find someone we could truly consider a bust.

The second and third rounds though? Not so much. And since those are the rounds...