Show me the appreciation!
It is missing the same ring as “Show me the money!” – made famous by Cuba Gooding Jr.’s character in “Jerry Maguire” – but that’s how Giants Logan Ryan felt when he signed a three-year, $ 31 million contract extension on Christmas morning. Ryan played in 15 playoff games, winning two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans, but …
“I haven’t always felt appreciated by the organization for whatever I did that year,” Ryan said on Sunday after making eight tackles and recovering a fumble in a 27-13 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. “I think the Giants really appreciate me because I’m not even the player I’m on the field, but I think they appreciate what I’m bringing off the field.
“I think they appreciate what I do in the community, I think they appreciate my wife and I – our family, our struggles, our successes – and I think they appreciate the leadership I bring to the team. That sense of appreciation is what we all look for in life, regardless of money, and I found that here special and something that I wanted to keep feeling. And I wanted to pay that back to the organization by committing to this for as long as I did. ”
Money doesn’t hurt, of course. Ryan will earn about the same average salary of $ 10 million a year as a 30-year-old security he received as a 26-year-old cornerback who left the Patriots for the Titans. It’s the threshold he was aiming for in the off-season last season in free service, but which he couldn’t get from any team – before switching agents and settling for half by signing with the Giants after training camp.
Only 11 other NFL protections average at least $ 10 million per year.
The Giants didn’t want to lose the New Jersey native – a valuable voice that spread messages from Coach Joe Judge in the locker room, the main cog in Coordinator Patrick Graham’s disguised secondary schemes, and the epitome of franchise values desired by ownership. So they risked negotiating against themselves before seeing the market value set in March.
“It’s done pretty quickly,” Ryan said. “The organization asked me if I wanted to be here. I said yes. I think it was a great deal for both parties. ”
Ryan has missed the playoffs just once in his eight-year career, and this is the first time on a team with a losing record since his first season with Rutgers in 2010.
“Rocky road there was not signed for a minute, but I found a renewed belief in myself as a player, as a leader, and I believe the organization believed in me too,” said Ryan. “I wouldn’t sign a deal for free agency for two weeks if I didn’t believe in this organization. I believe in the culture set. I believe in the work ethic that we apply every day. “