Victor Cruz compares his time with New York Giants, Chicago Bears
Victor Cruz compares his time with New York Giants, Chicago Bears
Once a Giant, always a Giant. That's the motto just about every player who's donned the Blue carries with them.
Add former All-Pro wide receiver Victor Cruz to that list.
Cruz became a sensation with the Giants as a local walk-on in 2010. His famous salsa touchdown celebration dance was a fan favorite, and he was an integral part of the Giants' Super Bowl XLVI championship team.
Cruz suffered a devastating knee injury in 2014 that effectively ended his career. He returned in 2016, but clearly was not the Victor Cruz fans knew and loved.
The Giants released Cruz in February of 2017, and he signed a one-year deal with the Chicago Bears. He was released before the season began and decided to retire after a Giants reunion fell through. He wasn't meant to play anywhere but New Jersey it seems.
In a recent interview, Cruz described what life is like going from the Giants to another team in the NFL.
"It was the Bears, yeah," Cruz said on the New Rory & MAL podcast. "I was there for a little cup of coffee. It's funny because once I transitioned, you know, the stigma, or not the stigma, but something they tell you in the league often is like, 'Oh, it ain't, you know, when you leave the Giants, it ain't the same everywhere.'
"And I'm like, well, I'm going to the Bears, a heralded organization, been around for a hundred years. Like, they absolutely run a high-level organization there. And I got there and I was looking around, I was like, this [expletive] is trash. Food was trash, ownership was trash, coaching staff was trash… It was just awful. In comparison to the Giants, where it was like gourmet, we got packaged lunch."
Harsh words. To their credit, the Bears have upgraded their game since then. They realized the NFL is a high-stakes business and, if they were to attract free agents, they needed to modernize.
The Giants have always been a class outfit. Sure, they've dysfunctional in many areas but they always treated their players with dignity and respect.
You can thank Wellington Mara for that. He saw the human side of the players and the business. Almost to a fault, one might say. But ask any Giants player who went on to play elsewhere, they'll all say the same thing about how well they were treated by Big Blue.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
26 minutes ago
- USA Today
NFL analyst outlines unlikely scenario where Bill Belichick lands with Giants
NFL analyst outlines unlikely scenario where Bill Belichick lands with Giants There was a time when the New York Giants would have considered finally hiring Bill Belichick to be their head coach. Many close to the team don't ever see this coming to fruition, although crazier things have happened. That hasn't precluded figures in the national football media from continuing to connect Belichick to the Giants, where he won two Super Bowls as Bill Parcells' defensive coordinator nearly four decades ago. Belichick is set to coach the University of North Carolina Tar Heels this season, but the gig could end up being short-lived for several reasons. That would put a 74-year-old Belichick back on the NFL coaching carousel next spring, a ride that has not been kind to him since he left the New England Patriots after the 2023 season. From Joel Klatt of FOX Sports: Let's be honest, Belichick isn't going to feel a lot of pressure at UNC. If this doesn't go his way, he's not going to lose a lot of sleep over this. Rather, the pressure is on the fan base. You can tell that the fan base is invested in this in a way that's similar to Colorado and Deion Sanders. They hired possibly the best coach in NFL history, so maybe they're just happy he's in Chapel Hill. That's why the pressure doesn't ratchet up in UNC's schedule. It ratchets in the New York Giants' schedule, or another NFL team that could be a potential suitor for Belichick. Belichick can certainly pay the $1 million to get out of his contract, and if he has the opportunity to coach the Giants (who he has a history with) or another NFL team, he could opt to go that route. So, I think the pressure point date here is Dec. 1, when the Giants take on the New England Patriots right before their bye week. If New York is 2-11 entering that game and loses, do you think Brian Daboll is getting fired right after? I think he could. That's also right when the college football regular season ends. The Giants wouldn't be able to name their next head coach right after, but Belichick could have an inkling on whether he could become their next head coach around that date. That's a bit of a dot-connecting exercise by Klatt. He could end up being closer than we think, though. The Giants are up against the NFL's toughest schedule, but they are better this year, too, so that could be a wash. With more experience at quarterback and more depth overall up and down their roster, the Giants could be closer to a .500 team in 2024. That won't prompt a change in the coaching ranks, but if it does, Belichick isn't likely to be on the top of their shortlist for the job.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Giants bring 1-0 series advantage over Dodgers into game 2
San Francisco Giants (41-29, second in the NL West) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (41-29, first in the NL West) Los Angeles; Saturday, 10:10 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Giants: Landen Roupp (4-4, 3.42 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 63 strikeouts); Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw (1-0, 4.35 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 15 strikeouts) Advertisement BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Dodgers -179, Giants +149; over/under is 9 runs BOTTOM LINE: The San Francisco Giants lead 1-0 in a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Los Angeles has a 23-12 record in home games and a 41-29 record overall. The Dodgers have a 26-8 record in games when they hit two or more home runs. San Francisco has a 41-29 record overall and a 19-18 record in road games. The Giants are 23-11 in games when they did not allow a home run. The teams meet Saturday for the second time this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Shohei Ohtani has 11 doubles, five triples and 23 home runs for the Dodgers. Andy Pages is 12 for 40 with three doubles, a home run and four RBIs over the past 10 games. Advertisement LAST 10 GAMES: Dodgers: 5-5, .235 batting average, 4.55 ERA, outscored by 15 runs Giants: 8-2, .239 batting average, 3.55 ERA, outscored opponents by 11 runs INJURIES: Dodgers: Tony Gonsolin: 15-Day IL (elbow), Luis Garcia: 15-Day IL (adductor), Tyler Glasnow: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Evan Phillips: 60-Day IL (forearm), Blake Snell: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Roki Sasaki: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Blake Treinen: 60-Day IL (forearm), Edgardo Henriquez: 60-Day IL (foot), Kyle Hurt: 60-Day IL (elbow), Emmet Sheehan: 60-Day IL (elbow), Michael Grove: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Brusdar Graterol: 60-Day IL (shoulder), River Ryan: 60-Day IL (elbow), Gavin Stone: 60-Day IL (shoulder) Giants: Patrick Bailey: 10-Day IL (neck), Matt Chapman: 10-Day IL (hand), Jordan Hicks: 15-Day IL (toe), Justin Verlander: 15-Day IL (pectoral), Tom Murphy: 60-Day IL (back) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
Associated Press
7 hours ago
- Associated Press
Giants bring 1-0 series advantage over Dodgers into game 2
San Francisco Giants (41-29, second in the NL West) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (41-29, first in the NL West) Los Angeles; Saturday, 10:10 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Giants: Landen Roupp (4-4, 3.42 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 63 strikeouts); Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw (1-0, 4.35 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 15 strikeouts) BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Dodgers -179, Giants +149; over/under is 9 runs BOTTOM LINE: The San Francisco Giants lead 1-0 in a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Los Angeles has a 23-12 record in home games and a 41-29 record overall. The Dodgers have a 26-8 record in games when they hit two or more home runs. San Francisco has a 41-29 record overall and a 19-18 record in road games. The Giants are 23-11 in games when they did not allow a home run. The teams meet Saturday for the second time this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Shohei Ohtani has 11 doubles, five triples and 23 home runs for the Dodgers. Andy Pages is 12 for 40 with three doubles, a home run and four RBIs over the past 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Dodgers: 5-5, .235 batting average, 4.55 ERA, outscored by 15 runs Giants: 8-2, .239 batting average, 3.55 ERA, outscored opponents by 11 runs INJURIES: Dodgers: Tony Gonsolin: 15-Day IL (elbow), Luis Garcia: 15-Day IL (adductor), Tyler Glasnow: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Evan Phillips: 60-Day IL (forearm), Blake Snell: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Roki Sasaki: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Blake Treinen: 60-Day IL (forearm), Edgardo Henriquez: 60-Day IL (foot), Kyle Hurt: 60-Day IL (elbow), Emmet Sheehan: 60-Day IL (elbow), Michael Grove: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Brusdar Graterol: 60-Day IL (shoulder), River Ryan: 60-Day IL (elbow), Gavin Stone: 60-Day IL (shoulder) Giants: Patrick Bailey: 10-Day IL (neck), Matt Chapman: 10-Day IL (hand), Jordan Hicks: 15-Day IL (toe), Justin Verlander: 15-Day IL (pectoral), Tom Murphy: 60-Day IL (back) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
