Shockey inured at the Super Bowl
In a move that should come as no surprise to anyone who has been following the Giants the past few months the team has finally dealt their oft-disgruntled tight end Jeremy Shockey to the New Orleans Saints for 2nd and 5th round draft picks in the 2009 draft.
The deal made just days ago was the exact same deal the Saints offered the Giants prior to this years draft and will reunite Shockey with one time Giants offense coordinator and current head coach of the Saints, Sean Payton. The one year that Shockey spent with Payton, his rookie season in 2002, was his most prolific in the NFL. He caught 74 passes for 894 yards and 2 TD’s and should be an excellent addition to the
pass happy offense Payton has installed in New Orleans.
In that sense the trade should be a mutually beneficial one. Though the Giants have lost an incredibly talented player in Shockey who is a four time Pro-Bowler, they’ve also lost the numerous distractions that
come with him. Shockey has always been a highly gifted receiver; he is explosive and plays with emotion. I remember watching him in the Hall of Fame game his rookie season, his first game as an NFL player, he
literally plowed over people on his way to the end zone a sign of things to come I thought.
Yet, things never did go as far as many expected. Though Shockey did show flashes of brilliance, he never did develop into the devastating weapon that the Giants and their fans thought he would be, and far too
often he let his emotions get the best of him. He once threw a cup full of ice into the stands during a playoff game, and he often criticized QB Eli Manning for not looking his way. He hated the idea of blocking and wanted to get vertical as much as possible. He would criticize the coaches, the players, the fans, and the franchise and it finally all came to a head this off-season when himself and Jerry Reese got into a shouting match during mini-camp, it was the beginning of the end of the Shockey era.
So who really wins in this trade? At this point it’s difficult to say, but all things considered it will probably work out just fine for all parties. The Giants have proven they can play without Shockey and win. Many people actually credit Shockey’s departure from the lineup as the reason for the rapid maturation of Eli Manning, though Eli has claimed that he will miss Shockey, I for one can’t see why. You also have to consider the fact that Shockey just did not want to be a New York Giant any longer, and would have been a cancer in the locker room, many reports stated that his recent antics alienated his teammates to the point that it may have been difficult to find him a roommate at training camp. No franchise needs that type of distraction when they’re trying to defend a Super Bowl title.
Futhermore, the Giants do get a 2nd and 5th round pick in next years draft, and who knows, the Saints could tank next year and that could end up being a high second rounder, or the Giants could package some
picks and trade for an additional first round pick, all legitimate options.
The Saints on the other hand, finally get a tight end that can stretch the field and one who has worked extremely well in Payton’s system in the past. However, Shockey is coming off a serious leg injury and may
not be fully healed by the start of the season and as we’ve seen he can become a huge headache. But, he should be happy in New Orleans,at least for the time being.