Victor Cruz Adds To Giants Offseason Concerns

Now that the parade has wrapped up, the parties have winded down, and the confetti has been swept up from the streets, it's time for the Giants to begin to look forward to 2012. Brandon Jacobs is a free agent, Mario Manningham is a free agent, and of course, Osi Umenyiora is going to want a new deal. And those are just some of the big issues that we knew about before the off-season began.

The Giants front office can add Victor Cruz to the list of front office concerns. Today Cruz, who is only scheduled to make $490,000 next season, said, “I feel like after my performance this year, you know, I feel like I deserve to be paid more money at this point.  But that’s something I’ll let my agents and those people take care of and I’ll just go out there and play the game.” He by no means took a hard stance here, but certainly did outplay his contract and definitely deserves a raise.

The problem is, the Giants don’t have very much cap space, and will certainly have to spend money elsewhere to fill holes and resign free agents. As much as Cruz deserves to be paid, and as much as a disgruntled Cruz would be a distraction, the fact is that the Giants may not be able to afford to give him a pay bump. What’s more, if Jerry Reese were to work out a new contract for Victor, Osi would be even more displeased with the fact that the Giants have refused to rework his deal. Both guys were major assets, and both guys deserve to get more loot, but how do you do it?

So keep in mind Giants fans; Jerry Reese knows what he's doing. When we likely lose Manningham, it’ll be because someone over pays him, and if we part ways with Osi, it'll be because we can find value for him on the market. Don’t panic. Remember Steve Smith? Remember Kevin Boss? This off-season is going to hurt while we watch a couple of our playoff heroes depart, but remember: In Reese We Trust.

G-Men 2012.