T-Rock's Take: Inside the Giants

I'll just jump right in...

-- The Giants re-signed OL Grey Ruegamer to a one-year deal, which gives them six veteran OL who played significant time last season.

-- Michael Strahan is in attendance for the off-season program, and he didn't feel much like chatting with the two reporters (me being one of them) who stuck around when he arrived. He was asked if he asked to be traded and... well, let's just say he didn't answer.

-- Count Corey Webster as one of the defensive players who's looking for a fresh start under new DC Steve Spagnuolo. "Hopefully, this is a fresh start for me," he said. "It's a chance to really show what I can do... Sometimes (the past two years), I got mixed signals. I didn't really know what the coaching staff was asking for. It's never a good thing when a player and the coach aren't on the same page. We're all here to win."

Tim Lewis tried to turn Webster from a press corner during his successful years at LSU into a Cover-2 corner with the Giants, and the results weren't terribly good. Lewis dressed down Webster near the end of last season, according to two players, and even us reporters could see that Webster had withdrawn as the season went on.

"It's a transition, and it doesn't just happen overnight," Webster said of becoming a Cover-2 corner. "As a player you have to be able to adjust. I definitely thought I could have done better."

-- Chris Snee pulled no punches when he talked about his reaction to Luke Petitgout being cut last month. "Was I disappointed? Absolutely," he said. "He's been here eight years and he gave a lot to this organization. He's someone who's a friend, and the O-line as a group was pretty tight. He was one of our leaders. Now, someone else has to fill that void."

David Diehl said he hasn't been told anything about where he'll play, but he's ready for anything. As usual.

-- Umenyiora and Mathias Kiwanuka each went to visit relatives in Africa -- Umenyiora went to Nigeria, where he was born, for the first time in 12 years and became a Chief; Kiwanuka went to Uganda for the first time in 15 years and did something he didn't think he would on the long flight over.

"I did watch 'The Last King of Scotland,'" he said, referring to the film for which Forest Whitaker won an Oscar playing Ugandan dictator Idi Amin, who personally murdered Kiwanuka's grandfather, Benedicto, some 40 years ago.

"I didn't think I was up to seeing it, but friends told me it was really tastefully done, and it's even popular in Uganda," he said. The film makes a passing mention of his grandfather. "It was very well done and pretty truthful in the way it portrayed Uganda and (Amin)."

-- Among the locker shuffles: Jason Bell has Tiki Barber's locker, Jeff Feagles moved into Petitgout's locker and Brandon Jacobs has Carlos Emmons' locker.

-- Eli Manning got quite animated when talking about his brother's "Saturday Night Live" show last weekend. "He was really good," Eli said. "They changed the monologue on him right before the show and they kept saying, 'Don't memorize the lines because they might change.' He worked hard at it."

Eli's brief appearance came during the monologue, when he stood and waved. "It was real complex," he said.

I crashed out before the show started, but I saw the monologue and the instant-classic United Way sketch on YouTube. "I can't even stand to look at you. Go sit in the Port-O-Let for 20 minutes." I'm guessing Peyton actually does this with rookie WRs in training camp.

He took his physical this morning, passed (presumably), and the Giants dropped him off in the press room to meet reporters. Mitchell said he thought free agency would be a bit different -- clearly, the $900 million Adalius Thomas got, then the Chiefs signing Napoleon Harris, then the complete silence from around the league for three weeks wasn't what he had in mind.

But Mitchell is a Giant and prepared to play an outside LB spot. "It's a team that can win a lot of games and I can do something right away," he said. The deal is the same as I reported yesterday -- $250,000 signing bonus, $750,000 salary. One year to make an impact -- kind of like his new head coach.

"I wasn't opposed to a one-year deal at this point," he said. "Hopefully I'll do a great job and we can build on that."

Today is the first day for us reporters to hang out in the Giants locker room during off-season workouts... Not much news, but a few tidbits:

-- DE Justin Tuck just had the screws removed from his foot eight days ago, so he hasn't started doing much except walking without feeling something very uncomfortable in his foot. He didn't sound sure he'd be ready for the veteran minicamp in June, but definitely for training camp.

-- DE Osi Umenyiora has given himself a new nickname: All-Access Osi. After boycotting interviews for the better part of two seasons, he said today he wants to change his image.

-- Eli Manning said he's had a few meetings with new QBs coach Chris Palmer. "I gave him a list of things I want to improve on, he had his list," Manning said. "He's got a new, different perspective."

Manning also said he hoped Plaxico Burress and Jeremy Shockey would check in before the June minicamp to work with him -- and that he won't go to Florida to work with them.

"I hope we can get them here a few times before we start (minicamp)," he said. "This is where I have to be, this is where all the other players are, this is where I work out, train, see my film. This is where the offseason program is."

Houston announced that it matched the Giants' offer sheet to FB Vonta Leach... No, really. The Texans swear this time it's for real.

And the Giants are opening the 2007 season in Dallas on Sunday, Sept. 9, in prime time.

One-year deal for $1-million, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. So the Giants have a veteran LB to play alongside Antonio Pierce -- where Mitchell plays, strong side or weak side, will be determined.

Unless the Giants go out and sign another veteran, I doubt this impacts their draft decision-making much. Mitchell is trying to position himself to have a strong year and earn a bigger deal next spring, and the Giants still lack depth there.

Funny, no one really mentioned his name since FA started, but former Chiefs MLB Kawika Mitchell is visiting with the Giants and could be signed by the end of his trip to Giants Stadium, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.

Mitchell is 27, two years younger than Al Wilson and three years younger than Bills LB Takeo Spikes, in whom the Giants have only a mild interest since he's played only 15 games the last two seasons.

The LB market has been a bit odd this FA period -- Cato June got very little from the Bucs, Adalius Thomas got a big pile o' cash from the normally stingy Pats -- and the Giants, who need two LBs, have been patient. That may have been the right strategy all along.

Mitchell has been the Chiefs' starting MLB the past two full seasons, over which time he didn't miss a game and had 101 and 102 tackles. He's 6-1, 253 pounds and he could ideally play either strong- or weak-side LB, depending on what the Giants want.

More to come on this as the day goes.

No word yet on whether the Texans have officially and finally matched the Giants' offer sheet to FB Vonta Leach. The Giants expect Houston to do so, but it ain't happened yet.

His agent. Ralph Vitolo, called me and said the Texans have not decided whether to match the Giants' offer... The Texans did clear plenty of space by cutting QB David Carr and RB Domanick Williams today, so they may still match the offer, just not yet.

You follow?

And, um, Chip -- there's no deal. Trust me.

The Texans matched the Giants' four-year offer sheet to FB Vonta Leach today, leaving the Giants still 0-for-free agency. Jerry Reese will be with the rest of the Giants' front office in Phoenix for league meetings that run through Wednesday... I don't know what that means, but maybe getting out of the office for a while will be nice for him.

I'm off to hoops.

That's the word from a person familiar with the trade talks, seconds ago (love the internets!).

Broncos LB Al Wilson is, or was, in Giants Stadium today to take a physical, which seemed to be the last hurdle to closing the deal. The person did not offer details, only to say the deal was dead -- it was believed to be for a mid-round draft pick.

Wilson is 29 and is coming off a second surgery on his right thumb in as many seasons. He also jammed his neck in a Sunday night game with the Seahawks this season but returned to play the following week.

One can make the logical assumption that the Giants medical staff didn't like what they saw, but that's only an assumption. What's fact is that Wilson is not coming to the Giants.

He's be the Broncos MLB, an eight-year veteran and one of the heart-and-soul guys on the Denver defense. He's also due to get $5.2 million next season and Denver is snugly up against the cap after doling out big dough to RB Travis Henry and TE Daniel Graham.

So... What would the Giants give up? Maybe a DE -- the Broncos cut Courtney Brown recently and are in need of an end. The Giants have four. Two of them, Osi Umenyiora and Mathias Kiwanuka, aren't going anywhere. Michael Strahan did go to Jerry Reese a couple weeks back to ask for more money and was turned down -- might he have requested a trade? Doubtful. Might the Giants want to trade the 35-year-old, who's coming off another major injury? Only for the right price, and a 29-year-old LB doesn't sound like the right price.

So Justin Tuck is a possibility, but the Giants might feel they need him in case one of the other guys gets hurt. Too bad he got hurt along with all of the other guys last season (isn't it amazing to think back that three of the Giants DEs were down for a combined 23 games?).

So that leaves draft picks... And Reese stated he wasn't interested in giving up first-day picks in a trade. Is Wilson only worth a fourth-rounder? Be a steal if the Giants could do that.

We'll see how this develops tomorrow, when the Texans might decide whether to keep FB Vonta Leach as well. Stay tuned... Haven't said that yet this off-season!

No, not Lance Briggs... Heck, I can't even think of a free-agent left who'd be considered big-time.

This was a special visitor of a different sort to Giants Stadium today: Bill Murray, of Caddyshack fame. He's done other great stuff -- Rushmore, one of my favorite flicks of the last decade, to name one -- but since we're on the sports page here, we'll go Carl Spackler on you.

Why was he in the building today? Helping to recruit FAs? Not quite.

He came in to speak with some of the Giants who participate in the team's high-school mentoring program, to help the guys feel comfortable speaking in public. Seems Murray is friendly with someone in the Giants' front office, and it went from there.

I hear Murray's a diehard fan of all sports things Chicago, so maybe he can work something out to get Briggs in here... Well, at least someone well-known came to see the Giants today.

Back when I was in college, there was a bit of a comedy debate: Murray vs. Chevy Chase. I doubt anyone today would look back at their respective movies and say it's even a contest; then, the Vacation and Fletch movies were a bit more recent, so it was almost a contest.

Almost.

I compare it to, say, Vince Vaughn vs. Will Ferrell now. With Vaughn being Murray (Chicago guys, funny with words, not physical stuff) and Ferrell being Chase (much more slapstick). And me falling on the side of Vaughn-Murray. In fact, it's not even really a fair fight, but I defer to those out there who prefer Vacation to Stripes. Or Talladega Nights to Wedding Crashers (though Ferrell was in that too).

Gee, I could go on for pages... And no, there isn't any other Giants news yet. Sorry.

Well, 10:50, as I write this... And for you, Anthony, I'll post my vacation schedule so you'll know when the job becomes too hard for me and I have to step away and regroup.

The Giants did sign restricted free agent FB Vonta Leach to an offer sheet on Monday. Four years and $7.2 million, with reachable incentives that could take the total amount up to $8.3 million, and a $1.6-million signing bonus. Leach is 25, five years younger than current FB Jim Finn, and opened up some running room for Ron Dayne, of all people, with the Texans last year. That's gotta be worth something.

The Texans have until Monday to match the offer. Leach's agent, Ralph Vitolo, said he expects to hear from Houston by Friday. He also said there are no "poison pills" in the deal, like the one that the Vikings threw into their restricted FA offer sheet to G Steve Hutchinson last year that, had the Seahawks matched it, would have guaranteed the entire $49-million deal.

Vitolo did say there are some guarantees in the deal that the Texans might not like -- easily reachable incentives that bump up the cost of the contract right from the first year of it -- since Houston, unlike the Giants, doesn't like to hand out contracts with such escalators in them. The Giants (see Manning, Eli) do hand out such contracts.

The NFL Network reported yesterday that free-agent LB Keith Adams, late of the Dolphins, visited the Giants. Adams played for the Eagles and current Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo from 2002-05 and is known primarily as a special teams ace. He'd be more of a depth LB than a starter.

Speaking of LBs, Brandon Short -- who recounted his harrowing experience being right nearby when that crazed gunman killed three people on the West Village last week -- is still out there, waiting for a call. He and I spoke for a few minutes last week and he did point out that the Giants were 2-5 without him in the lineup last season.

But the mere fact that Short was injured for a month highlights what Jerry Reese wants in his players -- youth and health. It's why he's willing to shell out some of the limited salary-cap space the Giants have towards Leach rather than keep Finn, who has had numerous concussions and has some back issues as well. Finn's a warrior, no question, but it seems Reese wants to get younger where he can.

The Giants' off-season workouts began today, the involuntary/voluntary stuff that coaches expect all their players to attend but end up disappointed when a few folks go off on their own... Coughlin especially.

The team released a story by in-house writer Mike Eisen that included this paragraph:

"Despite the departure of several high-profile players, those who were in the locker room today stressed the Giants still have a strong nucleus. The group includes quarterback Eli Manning, wide receivers Plaxico Burress and Toomer, tight end Jeremy Shockey, linemen Chris Snee, Shaun O’Hara, David Diehl and McKenzie, defensive ends Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, middle linebacker Antonio Pierce, Madison and safeties Will Demps and Gibril Wilson."

I asked a person with the Giants if that meant that said nucleus was on hand today, or just part of the strong nucleus. Answer: Part of the nucleus.

One player who was there today said he didn't see either 17 or 80... So I guess they're not quite ready to jump on-board. To be fair, today was just lifting weights and getting to know one another. A quote from Michael Strahan, via Eisen:

"This change is bigger than most. This isn’t the usual one guy’s gone and replaced. This is a big change. It will be interesting to see how we adjust. I don’t know a lot of guys here, but I know a lot of them are young and we’re depending on some of those guys to do some stuff.”

Some guys, some stuff... Sounds like a plan.

We made a mistake in the paper today and the online story -- Eli did not get a new contract, he's simply maxing out the value of the initial one he signed after he was drafted.

I'm sorry, and Blauber's sorry.

In any event, this is still noteworthy. Despite the denials from the Giants, having one player with a cap number over $10-million for the next three years has to shrink the available cash to spend on free agents... Jerry Reese knew this, of course, so it's hardly a surprise. What the surprise may be to you fans out there is that the Giants were not flush with cap room when Mar. 2 rolled around, which can partly explain their inactivity.

The other part is that the FAs generally aren't that good -- witness the three-year, $12-million deal Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champ Cato June got from the Bucs. Not a lot out there, people.

Again, sorry for our mistake.

Apparently they didn't save enough by letting Frank Walker leave.

Just kidding.

The team announced today that tickets will go up by an average of $4.72 -- Sections 301-308, 314-328 and 334-340 will stay at $75. Sections 101-108, 114-128, 134-140, 309-313 and 329-333 go up $5 to $80. Mezzanine seats go up $10 to $95. And Sections 109-113 and 129-133 go up $10 to $85.

And in two or three years, when the new stadium is up and open, none of this will matter.

Since I haven't blogged in the past few days -- I'm in Buffalo at the NCAA tournament, where it is amazingly not snowing while I hear it's snowing down in the city -- I'll update you on what the Giants have done in free agency:

Ummm... Gimme a few.

Mostly because there isn't much news... Which clearly frustrates those of you who take the time to write in, but I'd say you should settle in for a lengthier FA period than you might have planned for.

WR Kevin Curtis headed down the Turnpike to the Eagles after wrapping his visit with the Giants today. He can't negotiate until Saturday, when his new agent is officially employed.

LB Donnie Edwards is on the Giants' radar, but they are not on his... A person close to Edwards told me that the Giants won't be able to afford the soon-to-be 34-year-old who has played for the Chiefs and Chargers; he's going to draw lots of interest and likely look for the best short-term situation he can. That ain't the Giants.

That's all for now... And for those who think the Ravens didn't give up a lot for Willis McGahee -- three picks and then a big pile of cash -- think again. It's a lot for a guy who's had an iffy career.

A person with knowledge of the talks between the Giants and K Jay Feely told me earlier today that the team decided not to increase its contract offer significantly over its offer from before free agency began, so Feely is headed elsewhere. The Dolphins, Chiefs and Falcons are still in the running for Feely's services.

According to the person, the Giants chose not to spend their money on a kicker -- they will likely head into the season with undrafted rookie free agent Josh Huston and a veteran signed later in the spring for less money than they wanted to pay Feely, who made 84 percent of his field-goal attempts in his two seasons with the Giants.

Kevin Curtis did not make it to see the Giants today, and perhaps he'll never make it -- remember, he wants to sign with the Lions, people. We'll see if he shows up.

But the Giants did make a competitive offer to K Jay Feely today, coincidentally after word got out that he was being wined and dined by the Dolphins. A person with knowledge of the situation said Feely also has interest from the Falcons and that the Giants' offer is worth considering; now that the bidding has begun in earnest, Feely may sign as early as tomorrow.

That'd be a kick (no punt intended) -- the first guy the Giants sign in FA is their own kicker.

Who knew a gosh-darn visit would be so tough to schedule? I thought signing these guys was the hard part.

What am I talking about? WR Kevin Curtis, slated to come in tomorrow, may or may not be here. What he definitely did do was fire Tom Condon as his agent, apparently after Curtis left Detroit earlier today without a contract.

Yes, he fired one of the biggest agents because he didn't get a deal from the Lions. In the words of someone who knows Curtis: "He's a weird guy."

Nonetheless, he will hire a new agent, though if Curtis is so hot to sign with the Lions, I'd imagine this new agent could get a deal done with the Lions. THE LIONS!!!

Anyway... That's all the news of the day, if you can call it that. And you read it here first: If Kevin Curtis is going through such agony to get a deal done with the Lions, maybe he's not the right guy for the Giants.

WR Kevin Curtis is coming to see the Giants tonight. For those who think Amani Toomer won't be the same when he tries to return from ACL reconstruction, this could soothe your minds. Curtis, 28, has played four seasons for the Rams as a depth pass-catcher. Less exciting is that, according to Curtis' agent, he is drawing interest from several teams, so he won't come cheap, even for a quality slot receiver.

OK, better news: His agent is Tom Condon, from the Creative Artists Agency -- Condon's clients include Eli Manning, so CAA's relationship with the Giants has been strong.

Speaking of... Luke Petitgout, who dumped CAA for Drew Rosenhaus once the Giants dumped him, is reportedly close to a deal with the Bucs.

Leonard Davis got $18m guaranteed from the 'Boys, Ahman Green got $22m from the Texans... And the Giants waited, patiently.

It's hard to fault Jerry Reese for not diving into this weekend of madness. It's not that the money is so crazy, relative to cap space and the rising costs of doing business in the NFL, but we said it here before and we'll say it again: The Giants are retooling for the future, not to try and mortage said future to win this season when things are so unsure and the available talent is so spotty.

So if it means a season of enduring Brandon Jacobs' growing pains, so be it. If it means a rookie LB on one side of Antonio Pierce and Gerris Wilkinson on the other, so be it. Frankly, the Giants did things with a bigger splash the past 2-3 offseasons, and what did it get them? Two playoff losses, a few washed-up LBs and a few draft picks sent packing for Eli.

A person with knowledge of the Giants' thinking said there hadn't been much talk of Tatum Bell coming in a trade; the Lions could actually use Bell, so it's doubtful they'd hand him over for the second-day pick Reese would be offering.

So patience is the key word, it seems. And it goes far beyond the next few days.

So OT Leonard Davis didn't visit the Giants today, even though his agent and the team spoke. A visit may happen next week, but Davis is visiting the Redskins first, so I doubt he gets away from there without one of those Publisher's Clearing House checks in hand.

RB Dominic Rhodes wrapped up his visit. The Giants were "impressed," according to a person familiar with the visit, but he left without a contract. That's rarely a good sign, but the fact that no RBs have signed anywhere may explain the hesitation.

So we're done for today. Short and sweet.

That trumps my son's snake tattoo. The 6-6, 345-pound Davis has played guard and tackle, the Cowboys and Redskins want him, so signing him away from those two division rivals would be a bit of a coup for Jerry Reese and the Giants.

The biggest development today was the temporary tattoo of a snake on my son's arm. Seriously, it shocked me more than anything else that happened today, and that includes the Giants' FA foray.

As of 8:19, at least one of the guys the Giants were interested in, Eagles S Michael Lewis, has signed elsewhere; another, Colts LB Cato June, was rumored to be on his way to being a Giant, except June's agent hasn't heard from the team.

OT Leonard Davis? Hot and heavy with the Cowboys and potentially Redskins, maybe coming to see the Giants.

CB Rod Hood? Rumored to be coming for a visit, but nothing from his camp yet.

FB Ovie Mughelli? Signed for six years and $18 mil with the Falcons.

RB Dominic Rhodes made it to town late, thanks to the weather, and there was no update on how his visit went as of yet.

The most intriguing bit of news was that the Giants reached out to Steelers LB Joey Porter. His agent emailed to say they had no visits lined up as of yet.

The big names are unofficially off the board -- CB Nate Clements to the 49ers for $80 mil over eight years, with a $22-mil signing bonus. Yowza.

LB Adalius Thomas is going to the Pats, it seems. Rich get richer.

So, as it seemed on the eve of FA, the Giants are taking a patient approach. It may not land them the big names, but that may not have been their plan.

Just got the word... No contract details as yet, but both sides appear to have compromised and gotten it done. I believe it's five years, not six, but the overall package should be worth roughly $4-million per. More on the way...

That'd be Jerry Reese and Tony Agnone, the agent for both Shaun O'Hara and Michael Strahan. Agnone traveled to Giants Stadium from Maryland today to try and get O'Hara's deal done -- and to hear Reese say in person that Strahan won't be getting a big raise for missing half of last season.

Betting that O'Hara does get done by tonight's FA deadline, simply because both sides want to get it done and they're not terribly far apart.

If he doesn't stay, the name I heard as the in-house replacement would not be Rich Seubert. It's Chris Snee. Seubert, presumably, would move to Snee's right guard spot. Snee has taken snaps at center in practice.

Jay Feely is a goner, though. Reese and Co. like Josh Huston, the OSU alum whom they signed in January. We'll see how that works out.

Almost forgot to add that the Giants tendered three of their restricted FAs: S Gibril Wilson (second-round tender), LB Reggie Torbor (fourth round) and RB Derrick Ward (seventh).