John Clayton pointed out in his blog that the timing of the deal was the confusing aspect of it. If the Giants were just going to take a 2nd and 5th rounder, the same offer that was on the table on draft day, why not accept it then and take Fred Davis with the second rounder to help fill the void Shockey would create. Now the Giants have to go a year with Kevin Boss who cannot block a lick - see the third and short where Jacobs got stuffed versus Dallas - as the starter with Mike Matthews who cannot catch a lick - see countless dropped balls when wide open in the flats - as the main back up. Reese's logic in the timing just does not make sense.
On top of all this I do not like the deal at all. Shockey was the heart and soul of the offense and when healthy (even just healthy enough to play) was still a top 5 TE. Granted he dropped too many easy balls, but he was Eli's safety outlet on third downs, and for some reason could make the tough catches (Amani Toomer has this problem as well). If the Giants dealt Shockey for a first rounder, even in 2009, I might be more apt to accept the deal, but I think they are losing too much for what they received and are putting too much faith in Kevin Boss, a guy who in a small sample set looked like a nice pass catcher and proved he cannot block.
I know the Giants won a Super Bowl without Shockey but the key on offense during the hot streak was Eli Manning's play. I think he will continue to improve but cannot play at the high level he did in the Week 17 and the playoffs especially without Shockey. The disgruntled TE, no matter how many times he "showed up" Eli by throwing his arms up after a pass that was not intended for him, still made Eli better, and I think the Giants will unfortunately find that out this upcoming season.
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