Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz said last week that he thought he needed to be targeted more often in the passing game if the team’s offense is going to be successful and he got that opportunity against the Cardinals.
The problem was that Cruz didn’t do a very good job of catching the ball. Cruz, who was targeted 10 times, dropped two straight passes in the fourth quarter and then came up short on a third ball that wasn’t as well thrown but was still catchable. That led to some boos from the crowd, although Cruz said he didn’t need to hear any catcalls to know what he’s supposed to do on the field.
“I just have to go out there and catch the football. That is my job. That is what is entitled of me, to lead this team, to lead this receiving corps while I’m out there,” Cruz said, via NJ.com. “That is pretty much all I have to do. I don’t pay attention to any of the outside things, to any of the negative things that go out there. I don’t look at any of that stuff. I just live my life and move on.”
With Odell Beckham still trying to get over a hamstring injury, Rueben Randle trying to fill a more prominent role and Jerrel Jernigan out for the season, the Giants are going to be asking a lot of Cruz this season as both a player and a leader of the position group. If he can’t fulfill those needs, the Giants offense may be in for another long season.
