Not that you’d expect Giants coach Pat Shurmur to complain about trading his best player, but given a chance, Giants head coach Pat Shurmur did not complain about trading his best player.
(This greatly enhances his ability to remain Giants coach Pat Shurmur for the time being.)
According to Paul Schwartz of the New York Post, Shurmur said he was “Absolutely” on board with swapping Beckham for a pair of draft picks and safety Jabrill Peppers.
“Everything we do behind the scenes, coaching and roster building, is collaborative,” Shurmur said. “My reaction is always the case with trades, it’s good for both parties.
“We feel good about what we got. We got a starting safety, we got a first-round pick and we got our third-round pick. We felt it was good for us and, because we were able to come to an agreement, Cleveland thought it was good for them.’’
Cleveland also felt good about taking pass-rusher Olivier Vernon off their hands in exchange for guard Kevin Zeitler, a swap of big contracts, and Shurmur said both trades had a “business” component. But like General Manager Dave Gettleman, he insisted the Giants expected to be competitive.
“We’ve gone into this offseason knowing we have to build,’’ Shurmur said. “I don’t like the word ‘rebuild.’ We’re building. Dave has a plan, we have a plan and we’re just moving forward. . . .
“There’s been a lot of changes. When Dave and I talk about this we want to bring in guys to help make our team better. Playing last year we were close in a lot of ways but we shined a bright light on the fact what’s needed to get better and that’s what we’re trying to do.’’
Whether the picks they acquired in exchange for Bekcham helps them toward that goal remains to be seen.