Brandon Jacobs on Braylon Edwards: “I don’t want him”
When asked recently about the idea of his team possibly adding wide receiver Braylon Edwards, Giants’ running back Brandon Jacobs emphatically said: “no.”
“I don’t want him,” Jacobs said yesterday on ESPN 1050 Radio. “There are great players in the league that I don’t want. I just think the chemistry between the teammates that I have now is great. We don’t need to add a new veteran to the whole group.”
Jacobs also said no to trading for Anquan Boldin.“I’m good with where we are,” Jacobs said. “I’m glad that we didn’t go forward and get [Edwards] or Boldin. Those guys are great guys [but] I’m not interested in that idea.”
This shouldn’t be taken as a knock to Edwards and Boldin because Jacobs is flat out saying that both players are great. This is more of Jacobs being a team leader and giving a boost to the players already on the Giants’ roster. By saying that the Giants’ are good as is, he’s giving wide receiver teammates Steve Smith, Domenik Hixon, Mario Manningham, Sinorice Moss, David Tyree and rookies Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden encouragement that they can succeed next season.
If you’re a Giants’ receiver and you hear a captain like Jacobs say that the team doesn’t need to add a great player like Boldin, then that should give you tremendous confidence.
Sounds more to me like Jacobs is threatened by the notion of another big time player coming to the team.
Players making these sorts of statements always rubbed me wrong – it’s not his choice. It’s not his call. He’s had two barely thousand yard seasons, no receiver on the team even went over 600 yards last year and the team lost its divisional playoff game last year.
Who does he think he is saying “I don’t want him,” Brandon, when you convince somebody to hand you the reins of an NFL franchise (or you demonstrate yourself to be a first ballot HOF type player), then I’ll give a hoot what you think about personnel matters.
I’m starting to think sports reporters talk to athletes waaaay too much.
Jeff – I didn’t take it that way at all.
I took it as Jacobs knowing that there is no way in hell that the Giants would trade for Edwards or Boldin now that the draft is over and minicamps have started (and after they took two receivers in the first round), so he’s telling the reporter, “let’s move on.”
I took it more as him giving encouragement to guys already on the roster and not as him trying to play GM.
Just my two cents.
The quotes being fairly short on context, perhaps I’m being too harsh.
Still, if I was the GM and read those quotes, I’d be at bit miffed at Mr Jacobs.