UPDATED: 4:18 p.m.
Justin Tuck, the captain of the Giants’ defense and a key part of two Super Bowl championship teams, is now an Oakland Raider.
The defensive end agreed to terms with his new team on Thursday afternoon, ending a stellar, nine-year career with the Giants. He always said he never wanted to leave, and he even gave the Giants one last chance to match what the Raiders were offering, according to a source.
But they chose not to, despite the 11 sacks he had last year in his revival season. So Tuck took what is reportedly a two-year, $11 million deal from the Raiders and began a new chapter out west – though he didn’t sound like he thinks this chapter will be his last.
“Everyone talks about once you turn 30, it’s all downhill,” Tuck said on Thursday in a conference call with the Oakland media. “I don’t believe in that. I don’t look at myself in that regard. I feel like I have a lot of great football left in me.”
The Giants clearly didn’t agree. The amount Tuck signed for obviously wasn’t beyond the Giants’ means, but they refused to go anywhere near that high, a source said, because of injury concerns and worries that Tuck’s performance last season was an aberration. In the previous two seasons he had just nine sacks total and was constantly nagged by a variety of injuries that seemed to significantly slow him down.
The Giants did make him an offer, though, and met and spoke several times with his agents since the end of last season. But the offer wasn’t a good one and Tuck decided to test the market. The feeling around the NFL was that Tuck wouldn’t find much and would eventually return to the Giants. It always seemed that Tuck had the same feeling, too.
“Last week, I absolutely did not see (signing with the Raiders) coming,” Tuck said. “It wasn’t necessarily on my radar at that point in time. But everything accelerated pretty quickly, and I’m excited. I really am. I like the direction that this team is talking about going in, and I just want to be a part of it. Obviously, everyone knows the history of the Raiders, and I just want to be a part of the group that brings it back.”
Now Tuck leaves the Giants after 60 1/2 sacks in 127 regular season games and another 5 1/2 in 10 playoff games. He also had four sacks in the Giants’ two Super Bowls — two each in Super Bowl XLVI and Super Bowl XLII. His performance in XLII was so dominant that he was nearly voted the Super Bowl MVP before Eli Manning’s brilliant, game-winning drive took the award away.
“Everyone knows I love the New York Giants and I appreciate nine years of my career being there,” Tuck said. “But I just wanted a new, fresh start and I think Oakland is definitely a good place to be. Everyone knows the fan base is great out here. I am looking forward to it.”
Tuck’s departure leaves a hole in the Giants’ pass rush that may not be so easy to fill. The Giants are hopeful that Jason Pierre-Paul will return to form after his 2013 season was derailed by back surgery in June. They also still have Mathias Kiwanuka and a lot of hope for Damontre Moore, a third-round pick from last April.
It might be hardest, though, to replace Tuck in the locker room where he was a respected leader and a terrific role model for young linemen.
The loss of Tuck was the second big departure on the Giants’ defense, after defensive tackle Linval Joseph signed a five-year, $31.5 million deal with the Minnesota Vikings on Tuesday. The Giants were at least able to keep middle linebacker Jon Beason off the market, signing him to a three-year, $19 million deal on Thursday.
