Giants running back Brandon Jacobs was pleased he was able to visit the team's facility, speak with the coaches and even grab a bowl of gumbo from the cafeteria.Brandon Jacobs received a text message from his agent, Justin Schulman, telling him the Giants’ facility was open for business.
“‘Go there and give it a try,’ is what he said. It didn’t seem like he was sure either,” the veteran running back told reporters after about a 90-minute visit to the Timex Performance Center. “He said, ‘Go up there and see what they tell you.' So I said, ‘Okay, we’ll see what they tell me.’ And we’re able to work out; we’re able to do anything.”
Yes, the Giants' complex was unlike any other today – the first day after U.S. District Judge Susan Nelson lifted the lockout – in that players were able to use the entire facility if they so chose. While Chris Canty took advantage of the offer, Jacobs was merely on a reconnaissance mission to find out "if it's true or not" the facility was open to the players.
It was, and he’ll be back on Wednesday for a workout.
“That’s the difference between this organization and all the other ones out there. They want us to get in and get some work in because, after all this is said and done, we’re still their players and we’re going to be the ones playing,” Jacobs said. “So why keep all our resources from us that make us better?”
Later, he added, “I wish the other teams continue to let their guys not go to the facility. I wish that happens. … Let ‘em continue doing it.”
Asked why the team allowed players full access to the facility while other teams were keeping their weight rooms closed — and reportedly, in Cincinnati and Buffalo, barring players entirely — Giants VP of communications Pat Hanlon reiterated the league's message to be "courteous and respectful" toward the players "and that's what we did."
Jacobs said he crashed an offensive staff meeting to talk to the coaches, who have been prevented from communicating with the players during the lockout. He spoke with Tom Coughlin, who asked about Jacobs’ family and touched on the work stoppage and what it will mean to the offseason.
“He didn’t hesitate on talking about the ending of last year, which is good. I know he was itching to get that one out, and I wanted to hear about it, too,” Jacobs said. “We have to come in and make things work. We’ve got to come in, work hard and try to correct those mistakes.”
On that note, Jacobs believes the Giants will be better equipped to handle the work stoppage than other teams because of the number of veterans on the roster.
“I just think a lot of guys who have very young teams are going to have trouble dealing with a situation like this and won’t be able to find a way to fix it,” he said. “In our case, it’s not going to happen because we have a good enough team and old enough guys around that know what it takes to win and be successful.”
Jacobs’ return to the facility wasn’t complete until he got himself a bowl of gumbo from the cafeteria. He said the kitchen always does a good job of making that dish – which is quite the compliment, considering he’s a Louisiana native.
“I don’t know if they made gumbo knowing I’d be in here today, but they did a good job making it,” he said, adding: “Everyone was very excited to see the few people that came in today. But that shows how everybody missed each other, being around each other as well. I just hope all of this stuff, they find a way to fix it and find a way to deal with it in a different way than keeping us from not being able to show up here.”
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We'll have more from Jacobs shortly on his own situation. Lots of interesting, insightful and even self-deprecating stuff from him.
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