Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz got his payday yesterday, but he wasn’t being selfish about it.
In fact, he hopes teammate Hakeem Nicks is next in line.
Upon signing his new $45 million contract, Cruz said he hopes there’s money and salary cap room left over for Nicks.
“I’m concerned as a teammate and as a friend because I want to see Hakeem around in Giants blue as long as we’re together in the National Football League,” Cruz said, via Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News. “But there’s ways to do things. There’s ways that you can create space.
“So I think that’s a road the Giants have to cross when they get there. But it’s going to be tough. It’s going to take some decision-making. It’s going to take whether Hakeem wants to be here or not. And it’s about him taking care of his family at this point. We’ll see how it goes, but it’s definitely going to be a long road ahead.”
Of course, Cruz might have actually made it longer.
Nicks isn’t going to be looking for slot-receiver money when his contract comes up after next season, and the market for outside receivers is closer to $10 million a year than the $7 million per year neighborhood of the Cruz deal.
Nicks is widely considered the better player, but with his injury record and the fact the Giants might not want to commit so many resources at one position, it’s unclear if such a deal will come.