Smalltalk » Dave Gettleman isn’t ready to make a decision

EAST RUTHERFORD L.J. Collier Jersey , N.J. (AP) — on Eli Manning’s future as the quarterback of the New York Giants.The general manager and the two-time Super Bowl MVP had a no-holds barred conversion about Manning’s future Monday after the team missed the playoffs for the sixth time in seven seasons.Gettleman would not say Wednesday whether the quarterback, who will turn 38 on Thursday, would be back for a 16th season.Manning’s $23 million salary cap hit will play a role in the decision, but the bottom line is Gettleman will do what is in the best interests of the Giants (5-11).“He came in and he wanted to talk,” Gettleman said of the conversation. “I have a crazy idea that if a guy asks me questions, I’m going to be honest with him. He wasn’t called to the principal’s office. He came to see me.”Manning, who has a year left on an $84 million contract, threw for 4,299 yards, 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions this past season despite being sacked a career-high 47 times. His completion percentage (66) was the highest of his career.“Once we got rolling, once everybody got comfortable with the offense, if you’re going to look at stats, it wasn’t too shabby what (he) did,” Gettleman said of Manning. “He still can make the NFL throws, you know what I’m saying? He’s still got it.”There is no doubt Gettleman respects Manning, who he called a “mensch.” It’s a Yiddish word meaning “a person of integrity and honor.”“There’s no deviousness http://www.seahawkscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-marquise-blair-jersey , there’s no duplicitousness, none of that stuff. He’s a mensch. Someday, I hope to be a mensch,” Gettleman said.The question is whether Manning is the best choice to lead the Giants to victory and Gettleman plans to watch plenty of videotape and talk to his coaches and scouting staff in coming to a decision.In a news conference that lasted more than 30 minutes, Gettleman said he liked the direction the Giants are headed. The dissention-ridden locker room from last season (3-13) was cleaned out, leaving only 13 players on the final roster.Among other topics Gettleman touched on:— He said the offense overcame early season woes to lead the NFC East in scoring, but the defensive play needed to improve.— Gettleman said the Giants didn’t re-sign receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to a five-year, $90 million before the season to trade him.— A recent survivor of a bout with cancer, Gettleman was certain he made the right choice drafting running back Saquon Barkley with the second pick overall instead of taking a young quarterback.— The veteran general manager also was happy with Pat Shurmur’s first season as coach, particularly after a 1-7 start.“We’re trying to build sustained success,” said Gettleman, who replaced the fired Jerry Reese last December. “That takes brutal honesty and that takes tough decisions.”— Gettleman would not comment on the status of cornerback Janoris Jenkins and linebacker Olivier Vernon. Both are under contract but each could be a salary cap casualty.“We’re going to look at film, we’re going to evaluate everything. Everything is on the table for us,” Gettleman said.— Looking forward to this year’s draft, Gettleman has no intention of forcing a pick, such as taking a quarterback early because of Manning’s age or a team need.“You do that D.K. Metcalf Jersey , you’re going to make a mistake, you’re going to screw it up,” he said.Manning’s father, Archie, recently said his son can’t go through another losing season. Gettleman found it humorous when asked it he could guarantee a winning team next season.“Really and truly, can anybody guarantee anything like that? Really?” he said. “All you Yankee fans thought you were going to win 162 games this year (laughter). I knew better. All kidding aside, you can’t guarantee that. There’s no way. I wouldn’t guarantee that to anybody.”Gettleman believes he heads into this offseason with a better understanding of what Shurmur and his coaches need in terms of players.While the offense was his focus heading into the offseason last year, the defense will occupy that spot now.Despite not making the playoffs, Gettleman does not see this as a rebuilding season. He actually hates the word.“You just keep going, you just keep building. It’s really what we’re doing here,” Gettleman said. “We’re doing our best to accumulate the talent that fits our schemes, and that understands how to play the game, and hates to lose. That’s what it’s really all about, and we’re going to continue to do this and get it right. We’re going to fix it.” PITTSBURGH (AP) — JuJu Smith-Schuster chose his words carefully.Smith-Schuster was trying to find some middle ground between being appreciative for Antonio Brown’s influence while also acknowledging things should be considerably calmer for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2019. The prolific but petulant Brown now is catching passes in Oakland following a high-profile divorce that included Brown taking thinly veiled public shots at Smith-Schuster.“The chemistry is on point,” Smith-Schuster said Wednesday. “Everyone is on the same page. Everyone is communicating. There’s really no — how do you say? — drama in our locker room.”At least not the kind Brown manufactured with regularity during his final two seasons in Pittsburgh, ones that coincided with Smith-Schuster’s ascent from the youngest player in the NFL to first-time Pro Bowler. Brown’s influence played a major role in Smith-Schuster’s rapid development http://www.seahawkscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-cody-barton-jersey , lessons Smith-Schuster will hold close now that he’s the longest-tenured wide receiver in the room.“I think everyone picked it up, not only us as receivers but everybody on the team,” Smith-Schuster said. “They all see how AB worked. They seen how he came out here every day and he just ran hard, 100 percent.”It’s all the other stuff — from Brown’s occasional social media meltdowns to his hot/cold relationship with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger — that Smith-Schuster and the Steelers want to avoid going forward. Replacing Brown’s production on the field will be almost impossible. He’s the only player in NFL history to have six straight seasons with at least 100 receptions.Yet Smith-Schuster is optimistic the group Brown left behind — one that includes second-year man James Washington, free agent signee Donte Moncrief, and third-round pick Diontae Johnson to go with Eli Rogers and Ryan Switzer — can still be effective. Oh, and do it quietly.“There’s so much motivation for everyone,” Smith-Schuster said. “You think about last year, having AB and Le’Veon (Bell) and this year not having those two guys, two great players. I think for this year we’ve got guys like Moncrief, James Conner, it’s his time now. It’s always been his time. We always want to rock with what we got in the locker room, so at the end of the day, whoever is in that huddle, 11 man, that’s what we’re going to rock with.”Every band Gary Jennings Jr. Jersey , however, needs a lead singer. With Brown gone, the gig now falls to Smith-Schuster. While stressing offensive production is a “collective” of all 11 players on the field, he’s also well aware the spotlight is on him following a season in which he caught 111 passes for 1,426 yards.“He’s going to have an awesome challenge ahead of him for this year and I think he’s ready for it,” Roethlisberger said.Smith-Schuster doesn’t have much of a choice. He believes he’s prepared for the spotlight and doesn’t think his age — at 22 and heading into his third pro season, he’s still the youngest receiver on the roster, born a few months after Johnson — will be an issue.“Being a young guy in a room, being 22, I feel like a French bulldog, you know, just barking at everybody,” he said. “At the same time, they’ve got dogs too, so they can bark. I like that role.”It’s one Smith-Schuster is intent on filling in his own way. Where Brown became increasingly adversarial and closed off during his tenure in Pittsburgh, Smith-Schuster is a giddy livewire.For proof look no further than his rollicking Instagram account http://www.seahawkscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-phil-haynes-jersey , one he doesn’t use to vent his frustrations — a Brown staple — but rather highlight his “YOLO” (You Only Live Once) philosophy. If he’s not shooting selfie videos of him dancing in his car, he’s hosting a water balloon fight , walking his dog Boujee, or looking for someone to play Fortnite with.His free-spirited touchdown celebrations made him an instant fan favorite when he broke into the league in 2018. But Smith-Schuster stressed he won’t let the rise of his own stardom get in the way of the bigger picture. He has no plans to get caught up in trying to match whatever numbers Brown puts up in Oakland this fall. Yes, gaudy statistics are nice. They’re also not the point.“I’m looking at mine, my own team, how we do and how we win,” he said. “I’m fine. I would take five catches for 30 yards and win the game than have 10 catches, two touchdowns. It’s not really about myself at the end of the day. It’s about the Super Bowl.”That’s a destination the Steelers believe remains within reach even with Brown on the opposite coast. Replacing him will be a group effort, one now led by a chatty, amicable and confident third-year pro who is intent on making sure his ego doesn’t get in the way.“There’s no need for me to go out of my way and yell at the guys,” he said. “We’re all adults here. We all know what’s right from wrong and everyone just works. Everyone has a voice in a room. It’s not just mine.”