It’s official. The New York Giants have finally reached rock bottom. Or, at least we hope.
One would think that they can’t possibly get any lower after news of the latest puzzling episode out at the Quest Diagnostic Training Center involving the dismissal of veteran cornerback Janoris Jenkins.
Jenkins, if you haven’t heard, used the word “retard” in a tweet and then doubled down on the usage of the word claiming it was culturally acceptable where he comes from. Giants beat writers (and many others) tried to give Jenkins an out but he refused to take it.
As a result, the Giants cut ties with Jenkins on Friday.
“This was an organizational decision,†coach Pat Shurmur said in a statement released by the team. “From ownership to management to our football operations, we felt it was in the best interests of the franchise and the player. Obviously, what happened this week, and the refusal to acknowledge the inappropriate and offensive language, was the determining factor.â€
That was only one of the issues the Giants had with Jenkins. He apparently sent that tweet from the practice field. He was not practicing this week because he injured his ankle in Monday night’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. That, supposedly, is why he had his phone on his person outside of the locker room. A clear breach of team rules and a direct sale in the face to this coaching staff and front office.
The swiftness and severity of the discipline is a sign that general manager Dave Gettleman and Shurmur are tired of the lack of dedication by some of the veterans. Jenkins was supposed to be a leader in the locker room this year and a mentor to the youngsters in the Giants’ secondary, but both his performance on and off the field has shown that the team overestimated him.
The 31 year-old Jenkins had one more season on his contract and his $14.75 million cap hit for 2020 made him a likely candidate to be released after this season. The Giants will incur a $3.5 million dead cap charge next year as a result of this move.
It is another black eye on a franchise that has sustained a beating the past seven years. Giant fans who are wondering when they’d bottom out, hopefully this is it.