The Giants are a little more than two weeks into training camp and one game into the preseason, but Super Bowl champion Victor Cruz already feels something is different with this year’s team.
The former Giants wide receiver had already predicted back in June that Big Blue would be above .500 this season, and speaking with The Post on Monday, he explained the encouraging vibe around the team.
“There’s different energy around the players and their attention to detail, and it’s coming through. It’s permeating on the football field,” Cruz said before teeing off in the APGA Mastercard Tour Championship Pro-Am being held at Bally’s Golf Links at Ferry Point.
“That’s just one game. See what happens throughout the course of the preseason, but the regular season is where it’s going to tell where it’s going to tell the tale.”
The Giants are going into Year 3 of head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen’s tenure at the helm.
Big Blue went through one of its biggest offseasons in recent memory, selecting edge rusher Abdul Carter and quarterback Jaxson Dart in the first round of the draft in April, which Cruz suggested was the moment Daboll “got his guys.”
“He got the type of athletes that he wants to have on this football team,” the former receiver explained before turning his attention to the other big offseason acquisition the Giants added. “Obviously, I think I’d be remiss in saying that adding Russell Wilson to your roster just changes things. Just his pedigree, his attention to detail, his leadership. It just changes the way people behave and react out there.
“I think that that’s just a small thing, but a big thing when it comes to being a football player, being a part of a team and having a guy like that on your roster is pretty special.”
The Giants won their preseason opener on Saturday and Dart threw 12 completions for 154 yards and one touchdown.
The rookie QB’s most impressive throw came in the second quarter on a 28-yard touchdown throw to Lil’Jordan Humphrey.
Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
“Jaxson played well. I was excited to see him,” Cruz said of the quarterback’s performance. “There were moments where he still got some growing pains, still a rookie, still got to figure out decision making. But I was surprised at how athletic he was. I think he did some good things getting out of the pocket and doing some good things with his legs. And then obviously the touchdown pass and some of those throws were pretty accurate.”
Cruz was in The Bronx on Monday to play the pro-am ahead of the start of the Mastercard Tour Championship, which is part of the APGA Tour, a non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring an inclusive future through the game of golf.
The former Giant has become a golf enthusiast. He has been playing for the past four years and said that he was looking forward to picking up some tips from the pros and sharing whatever wisdom he can from his years in the NFL.
“I’m just excited to be here and learn just as much from them as they probably can from me,” he said.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
