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Jerry Reese's Free Pass Is Running Out

Despite a train wreck of an offseason, some media and fans are cutting New York Giants GM Jerry Reese some slack. Many insist that since the leader of Big Blue’s front office was at the helm just three years ago when the Giants won the Super Bowl, one sloppy summer isn’t justification for crucifixion.

While it’s true that Reese was presiding over the organization at the time of Super Bowl XLII, it’s not fair to give him all the credit for the team’s victory over the previously undefeated New England Patriots.

Reese succeeded long-time GM Ernie Accorsi - who retired after nine years in the position - just 13 months before the Super Bowl. He began working with the organization in 1994 and had served as director of player personnel for the previous four seasons, but Reese only became the true head-man of the front office in January 2007.

In his first offseason as the man solely responsible for transactions Reese drafted Aaron Ross, Steve Smith, Jay Alford, Zak DeOssie, Kevin Boss, Adam Koets, Michael Johnson and Ahmad Bradshaw, signed Kawika Mitchell and traded for Reuben Droughns and Lawrence Tynes. Reese also added Madison Hedgecock and Domenik Hixon during the season.

But Accorsi was the man responsible for constructing a far greater portion of the Super Bowl roster including Eli Manning, Brandon Jacobs, Derrick Ward, Plaxico Burress, Amani Toomer, Jeremy Shockey, David Diehl, Shaun O’Hara, Kareem McKenzie, Chris Snee, Rich Seubert, Antonio Pierce, Gibril Wilson, Sam Madison, Justin Tuck, Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora, Matthias Kiwanuka, Fred Robbins, Barry Cofield, Corey Webster and Jeff Feagles.

As Director of Player Personnel Reese undoubtedly played a pivotal role in acquiring several of the team’s impact players at the draft including Manning, Umenyiora, Diehl, Snee, Wilson, Tuck, Jacobs, Kiwanuka, Webster and Cofield, but he should hardly be considered the sole architect of the title squad. Instead, Reese was a tremendous college scout and guiding hand that provided the finishing touches for an emerging team that bust through for a surprising victory.

Since the Super Bowl Reese’s work has yielded mixed results. In his four years at the helm, the Giants have a 40-24 record, a Super Bowl title, an NFC East title and no sub-.500 seasons. But the franchise hasn’t won a playoff game since Reese’s first season as general manager and it has experienced more than a few embarrassments both on the field and off it.

In the last three years Reese has added considerable talent at the draft in Kenny Phillips, Mario Manningham, Terrell Thomas, Hakeem Nicks, Will Beatty and Jason Pierre-Paul, but he’s also overpaid players like Michael Boley, Chris Canty, Rocky Bernard and Antrel Rolle and added mediocre stopgap solutions like Danny Clark, John Carney, David Carr, Deon Grant and Keith Bulluck.

Reese has bid adieu to many participants from the Super Bowl squad, ignored glaring holes on the roster, repeatedly antagonized one of the team’s biggest stars (Umenyiora), and his poor salary cap management resulted in the departures of key contributors Steve Smith and Kevin Boss via free agency in the last month.

Reese did make key contributions to the ’08 championship squad and he has done some good things over the last few years so he shouldn’t necessarily be lambasted for the team’s unsettling dormant summer, but his grace period is nearing expiration.

Only time will tell if Reese’s new penny-pinching ways and commitment to ceding jobs to young players will pay off, but it could easily blow up in his face. If it does, Reese’s get out of jail free card will lose what remaining value it has left.

Don't Blame Steve Smith For Leaving The Giants, Blame Jerry Reese For Letting It Happen

It’s tough to blame Steve Smith for following the money. Coming off complicated microfracture knee surgery, there’s no telling how much, how well, or how long Smith will play this season.

It was a foregone conclusion that he would get a one-year deal to re-establish his value along with the opportunity to test the open market again next summer. But as much as Smith, 26, wanted to return to the Giants, and by all accounts he was desperate to re-sign with New York, he would have been foolish to do anything but take the highest offer.

Smith, like all football players, has watched far too many promising young players disappear after injury and surgery, never to make another ripple on the NFL landscape, never again to earn the big bucks that have been such a huge part of the lavish lifestyle they've enjoyed for their first few years in the league.

Surely Smith is confident that he’ll come back better than ever, but he also must be realistic – and if he’s not being realistic, his agent is – and so he knew that he must cash in now, while he still has value.

Ideally Smith will miss just a few weeks of the season, put up Pro Bowl numbers and get his coveted long-term deal next offseason. But he’s only being smart and safe by taking the highest offer now. The Eagles offered $4 million, $2 million of which is guaranteed, which is believed to be far in excess of the Giants’ best offer.

Just a couple months ago Smith was one of Tom Coughlin’s most loyal soldiers, spouting off inflammatory tweets at Eagles running back LeSean McCoy. How this all unfolded was a shock to everyone, including Smith and if he had any other choice he likely would have taken it.

Smith is not the fool here, Giants GM Jerry Reese is. He’s fumbled through a train wreck of an offseason and just allowed quarterback Eli Manning’s favorite target to not only leave the organization, but to sign with the hated rival, the self-described “Dream Team,” the Philadelphia Eagles.

Reese and the Giants will insist that they were told by doctors that Smith might not play this year and might never be the same again, but indications are that this was all about the money.

Smith took the most he could get from a team that has added a steady stream of impact players this offseason, while Reese tried to untangle a poorly managed cap situation. Smith joined a legitimate Super Bowl contender, while Reese watched yet another key contributor leave for greener pastures thanks to financial constraints.

The brilliant roster construction of Reese’s Super Bowl XLII Championship squad is a distant memory and the only thing that fans will remember now is that Reese allowed Smith to become a member of the hated team that ripped their hearts out in the unbelievable season finale that eliminated the Giants from playoff contention.

Sports Fans Missing Out On The Best NHL Playoffs In Years

We’re in the midst of the best professional sports postseason in years and the vast majority of sports fans are missing it.

Some have wasted their time watching the mind-numbing action of spring baseball, some still await pro football players and owners to stop arguing over $900 million, and some have inexplicably chosen to watch the NBA Playoffs over hockey.

My question is why? Consider:

• The NHL recently concluded a whirlwind stretch with overtime in 15 of 16 nights from April 19^th through May 4^th. The NBA hasn’t had consecutive nights with OT in its postseason. In total, the NHL Playoffs have featured 20 overtime games thus far, the NBA, four.

• With the Detroit Red Wings come-from-behind win last night, we’ll see the fifth Game Seven of the NHL Playoffs tomorrow night; the NBA Playoffs have had none.

• Detroit was down three games to none and forced a Game Seven, the second team to accomplish that feat this postseason and third in two years. No NBA team has ever done that.

• Much has been made of the miraculous play of Rajon Rondo Sunday night when he dislocated his elbow only to return to action moments later. Ask hockey players if they’re impressed. In the first round, Washington Capitals defenseman Mike Green attempted to block a two pound piece of frozen rubber with his face after missing the second half of the season with a concussion. And he plays for a notoriously soft playoff team.

• The big off-court moral issue in the NBA this week came when LeBron James deemed a reporter’s question “retarded.” Sean Avery of the New York Rangers just released a PSA supporting marriage equality.

• The big villain and title favorite in the NBA is the Miami Heat, which imported stars LeBron James and Chris Bosh this summer to vault itself into title contention. In the NHL, all five remaining teams are reliant on homegrown talent that has played together for years.

• The NHL Playoffs have seen dazzling individual plays like David Legwand’s goal from behind the net, Ryan Kesler’s solo rush, and Nicklas Lidstrom’s lacrosse-style puck swat out of mid-air. NBA games are constantly stopped as players like Paul Pierce goad opponents into cheap fouls so they can score uncontested points from the free throw line.

The full support of the Worldwide Leader might capture the attention of America’s sports fans, but that’s not forthcoming. Those of us lucky enough to recognize how wonderful the NHL Playoffs have been will agree that there’s no way to put magic into words. You have to experience it firsthand to recognize it, and Game Seven Thursday night between the San Jose Sharks and Detroit Red Wings is a good place to start.

Fantasy Baseball Fanatics Salivate As Royals Recall Eric Hosmer

“Eric Hosmer has been summoned from Class AAA, and will join KC on Friday,” chirped Buster Olney from my TweetDeck yesterday.

It was a moment long awaited by the fantasy baseball community, and like every addict I rushed to open my league’s transaction page to scoop up Hosmer. He’s one of a select group of hotly anticipated minor leaguers that fantasy baseball junkies dream of snatching midseason.

The first reason is obvious; Hosmer could have a game-changing impact on fantasy leagues. The second is an underlying truth; fantasy baseball fans love to be the guy that got “the guy” that’s the next big thing in the sport.

Often mid-year call ups of top prospects fizzle out and disappoint, but for a dozen 2009 Matt Wieters there’s occasionally a 2007 Ryan Braun. Called up on May 25th, Braun looked like the winner of multiple MVP awards en route to an enormous rookie season in which he posted a .324 average with 34 homers and 97 RBIs in just 113 games with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Performances like Braun’s are rare, but Hosmer has the potential to have that kind of impact. Or so I’m told, because I’ll readily admit I hadn’t seen a second of video footage of Hosmer until yesterday. My opinion of him is based solely on the opinions of others that have seen him (I think) and know what they’re talking about.

Ninety-five percent of fantasy baseball players are with me, because it’s just not that easy to follow Omaha of the Pacific Coast League with so much else going on in life. But that won’t stop them from heading straight to their league’s site to try to grab Hosmer before it’s too late (and by the time you’re reading this, it probably is in most competitive leagues).

If you missed out on Hosmer, don’t fret. There will be a couple more super rookies getting the call sooner than later. In fact, Sam Fuld has been slumping horribly for the Tampa Bay Rays…Desmond Jennings, you’re on deck.

Maryland Fans Ride The Wave Of Emotions As Gary Williams' Retirement Is Digested

After hearing that Gary Williams retired my first mental image was of Dick Vitale sitting on his sofa with a huge grin on his face and a bucket of popcorn in his hands watching the ESPN crawl go by with the Williams news and Vitale yelling, “That would never happen at Duke, BABY!”

My second thought later on after reading more about Maryland’s situation at Testudo Times was that Terrapin fans reacted adorably.

The poor Terrapin supporters had the rug pulled out from under them when Jordan Williams surprisingly committed to the NBA Draft. Gary leaving was just kicking them when they were down.

The day got even worse shortly after news broke of Williams’ retirement when word leaked that highly anticipated recruits Nick Faust and Sterling Gibbs (Ashton’s brother) might consider decommitting to look at other schools. Maryland fans were crushed and their reactions were extreme.

“This is the worst day of my life,” read one of my sister’s texts.

Only, it turns out that things might not be as bad as they originally seemed.

Jay Wright, Jamie Dixon, Sean Miller, and gasp, even Brad Stevens were mentioned as candidates for the vacancy. Even though Stevens is a stretch, Terps’ fans appeared shocked at the appeal of their position. (My take: the job is so attractive because A) of its proximity to Washington D.C. B) it’s a recruiting hotbed that the right guy could own C) the school’s chief rival is the No. 1 measuring stick in college basketball, Duke, and Maryland plays the Blue Devils twice a year not to mention North Carolina).

Just because the media thinks Maryland’s job is a huge opportunity doesn’t guarantee things will play out that way in real life.

Still, the Terrapins failed to make the NCAA Tournament this year and the memory of the 2002 National Title is growing more distant. At 66, Williams wasn’t getting younger and as beloved as he was at Maryland, the end of Gary’s career was indeed in sight.

So maybe a change won’t be quite as bad as originally thought, provided the Terrapins actually land one of those big fish. If not, it will truly be time to panic for Terps’ fans.

Once Again The Flyers Failed To Acquire A Reliable Goalie And It Cost Them

The position of Philadelphia Flyers’ netminder has been a revolving door for over a decade, yet the team still hasn’t learned its lesson.

In last night’s Game Three loss to the Boston Bruins, Brian Boucher surrendered two goals in the first 1:03 of the game and the Flyers went on to lose 5-1 to push Philadelphia to the brink of elimination.

It was the sixth time in 10 playoff games that the Flyers switched goalies mid-game, and the inconsistency of Brian Boucher and Sergei Bobrovsky will likely force Philadelphia out of the playoffs early once again.

You’d think that by know the Flyers would have recognized that applying temporary bandages to a gushing wound doesn’t work, but this is nothing new. The Flyers have made the playoffs in 14 of the last 15 seasons, but they’ve had nine different starting goalies in the postseason during that timeframe.

This year Philadelphia relied on an erratic Russian rookie and a career journeyman backup to guide the team through the playoffs, and it cost them.

One instance of misguided faith by an organization in a player can be excused, but year after year the Flyers have entrusted inadequate men with the most important position on the ice.

Last year, the Flyers’ answer in net at the start of the season was a disgraced ex-NHLer that had experienced a brief revival in Russia. Philadelphia brought Ray Emery, the troubled ex-Ottawa Senator back to North America where he promptly succumbed to injury. The Flyers replaced Emery with Boucher and Michael Leighton, who had already been cast off by four teams. The duo split time and Leighton did an admirable job in the playoffs and guided the Flyers through the Stanley Cup Finals, but in retrospect his success may have been the worst thing for the Flyers because it reinforced the club’s notion that goaltending is overrated.

It’s true that in today’s NHL teams are investing less money in goaltending than ever before.

Many teams have enjoyed enormous success without having a big name in net, but the Flyers are clearly an exception to the rule. They’ve trotted out a seemingly endless list of unproven rookies, over the hill veterans, and unreliable foreigners, and have for years declined to acquire a legitimate star in goal.

Philly hasn’t exactly been shy about spending money on mercenaries during that time either. The Flyers have brought in high-priced players like Kimmo Timonen, Chris Pronger, Daniel Briere, Andrej Meszaros, and Scott Hartnell in recent years, and yet, the Flyers continue to neglect their own net.

Philadelphia’s refusal to acquire a top-flight goalie long ago became inexcusable. With the Washington Capitals’ eliminated, the Eastern Conference could have been the Flyers’ to lose this year and they could easily have won a Stanley Cup or two during the last decade. But the organization’s unwillingness to solidify the position has cost the Flyers repeatedly.

With some creative financial maneuvering this summer, Philadelphia will have another chance to remedy their only issue when Ilya Bryzgalov and Tomas Vokoun become unrestricted free agents. But if we’ve learned anything in recent years, it’s that Philly stubbornly refuses to admit its weakness. So there’s a strong chance next year’s absurdly deep Flyers’ squad will meet the same fate as this year’s, an early playoff exit thanks to inexplicable personnel decisions.