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Posted: July 25th, 2019, 9:27 pm
EAST RUTHERFORD http://www.newyorkjetsteamonline.com/trevon-wesco-jersey , N.J. (AP) — The New York Giants kept two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning in the dark until recently about his future with the team, and didn’t give him a warning about the trade of star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the Cleveland Browns.Speaking as organized team activities started Monday, the 38-year-old quarterback said the Giants informed him a month ago that he would be returning for a 16th season.The stunning news of the Beckham deal came secondhand: Manning read it on a crawl across the bottom of his television screen.In other areas, Manning expects the Giants, who have won eight games over the past two seasons, to draft a quarterback. He is entering the final year of his four-year, $84 million contract.Manning is looking forward to running the offense in Pat Shurmur’s second season as coach. Other players will have step up to replace Beckham, but he noted the offense ran well in the final four weeks when his top receiver was sidelined with a quad injury.“I think every year I am just worried about that next year,” Manning said. “That is what I am thinking about. I am thinking about right now with this team. Getting rolling, getting wins and doing whatever it takes to be a good teammate to get this team winning football games.”After going 5-11 last season, the Giants offered Manning no guarantees he would be back in 2019. In his postseason talk with general manager Dave Gettleman and Shurmur, Manning told them wanted to return. They evaluated the team for roughly two months before letting him know he would have another season.The Beckham deal was less personal Alexander Mattison Jersey , coming from a TV screen. Then came the texts.“That is how I found out,” Manning said. “The reaction, I wanted to reach out to him. Odell has been a teammate for five years and has been a friend. These circumstances, you think about the player involved. It is more than just a player; it is someone you have a relationship with. You think more about that person, how they are handling it and that they are OK and doing well with it.”The two spoke, and now they have to move on.“I think after being in the NFL for 16 years, I don’t think there are a whole lot of surprises anymore, “Manning said. “You learn to deal with everything. You learn to adjust, you move on and do my job. Do it to the best of my ability and get the players that are here up to speed.”Sterling Shepard, who is the No. 1 receiver since the trade, had a different reaction.“I was a little shocked at first, like everyone was I think but you sit back and you look at it, it’s kind of the nature of the business,” said Shepard, who signed a $41 million contract extension last week. “That was a point for me to really sit back and realize that this is a business, and that’s just how things go sometimes.”Heading into the draft next week, the Giants have the Nos. 6 and 17 picks in the first round, the second one coming from Cleveland in the Beckham deal. New York probably needs more help on defense after losing safety Landon Collins to Washington in free agency and trading linebacker/edge rusher Olivier Vernon to the Browns.Expect a lineman to be taken with the sixth choice. With Manning’s age, it’s possible they could go with a quarterback at No. 17.“I can see the Giants getting a young quarterback,” Manning said. “I understand that. I still have to do my job. I will do my part, same as last year. Go out there, play quarterback, win football games. That is what I am trying to do.”In talking to the team Monday Shurmur did not focus on the moves the Giants made in the offseason. He is looking to move forward.NOTES: Shurmur said CB Sam Beal (shoulder) and C Jon Halapio (broken right ankle, leg) are working and getting ready for the season. …Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins visited the Giants on Monday. TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — For the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the NFL draft was all about trying to give Jameis Winston a better chance to succeed.That not only means surrounding the fifth-year quarterback with playmakers on offense but rebuilding a defense that’s been one of the worst in the league since Winston entered the league as the No. 1 overall pick in 2015.Coach Bruce Arians and general manager Jason Licht began their first draft together since their days of working together with the Arizona Cardinals by selecting five consecutive defensive players over the first four rounds.They interrupted the overhaul by picking Utah kicker Matt Gay in the fifth round, then finished Saturday by taking little-known but speedy Bowling Green receiver Scotty Miller in the sixth round and Missouri defensive tackle Terry Beckner, Jr. in the seventh.“Feel really, really good about this one,” Licht said about the draft haul that began with selecting linebacker Devin White with the fifth overall pick.Cornerbacks Sean Bunting and Jamel Dean, plus safety Mike Edwards are part of the potential fix for a unit making the transition to a 3-4 scheme under defensive coordinator Todd Bowles after allowing the second-most points in the NFL last season.Offensive line and running back are areas of need that were not addressed in this draft.Licht reiterated that the roster is a work in progress.“We still have time to make some additions if we have to,” the GM said.“You can’t address every position that you may have some concerns. Whether they vary from big concern to small concern, you can’t — it’s just impossible to do it in a small amount of time during free agency or the draft,” Licht said. “But we have through August to do what we can.”WHO THEY GOTLicht and Arians passed on an opportunity to select the top-rated pass rusher in the draft, Josh Allen, to make White the centerpiece of the defensive overhaul. Bunting could compete for a starting job right away, too, while Dean, Edwards, Nelson and Beckner address the need for depth.SURPRISE MOVESelecting a kicker in the fifth round, No. 145 overall, was unexpected, especially considering the single biggest draft-day blunder under Licht’s watch was the decision three years ago to trade up 15 spots to select Roberto Aguayo in the second round, No. 59 overall. The former Florida State star was a major disappointment as a rookie and released after just one season in Tampa Bay.The position has been problematic for much of Licht’s tenure, which began in 2014.The GM insisted he had no qualms about drafting another kicker.“To me — and to us — it was a small price to pay to get a kicker Licht said. “You wouldn’t say the same thing for a receiver. If a receiver didn’t work out a couple years ago that you took in the second round, would you be afraid to take a receiver in the fifth round? No. This is a very, very important position.”HOW THEY DIDWhile they didn’t opt for any of the top edge rushers in the draft, the Bucs believe White has the versatility to bolster pressure up the middle, be a run-stopper and excel in pass coverage. With at least two starting jobs open in the secondary, Bunting, Dean and Edwards will be added to a mix of young candidates that include 2018 draft picks M.J. Stewart and Carlton Davis.“Competition is a beautiful thing in this league,” Licht said.WHAT’S NEXTThe Bucs have little flexibility under the salary cap to upgrade the roster and likely will need to release, trade or get six-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Gerald McCoy — due to make $13 million this year — to agree to a sizeable pay cut to free up money to sign their draft picks and make other significant moves.