NFL

Patriots claim Ballard from Giants in surprise move

Whenever a player is put on waivers there’s always a chance he will be picked up. The Giants knew this on Monday when they waived injured tight end Jake Ballard.

But they fully expected exposing Ballard to waivers was little more than a procedural move and that once Ballard cleared he would automatically move onto their Physically Unable to Perform/reserve list, spend the 2012 season rehabbing from his serious knee injury and make a return in 2013.

When Ballard yesterday walked into the Giants field house after 4 p.m. it seemed as if all went according to plan, that Ballard had cleared waivers and was back with the Giants. But it turns out Ballard came by to say goodbye. Surprisingly, the Patriots and Bill Belichick decided to claim Ballard, who now goes from the team that won Super Bowl XLVI to the team the Giants beat last Feb. 5 in Indianapolis.

“While this was very sudden and I am still experiencing a great deal of differing emotions, I wanted to take a moment to say thank you and place some closure on a wonderful chapter in my life,” Ballard said in a statement. “I will greatly miss my teammates, the fans, the organization and albeit short-lived, I will forever cherish all the great memories that we created during my time in a Giant uniform.

“Simultaneously, I am humbled by the opportunity that the Patriots have afforded me, and as I have always done, I will bring nothing but hard work, professionalism and integrity to what is already a world-class organization.”

Though Ballard, 24, had just two catches for 10 yards in the Giants’ 21-17 Super Bowl win over the Patriots, Belichick must not have forgotten that Ballard had a big game in Big Blue’s 24-20 victory in New England during the regular season. In that game, Ballard had four catches for 67 yards, including the game-winning touchdown.

Ballard’s agent, Blake Baratz, on his Twitter account wrote “As I stated yesterday, a “smart’’ football organization might claim [Ballard] while he’s hurt to own his rights. He’s now a Patriot!’’

Ballard suffered extensive ligament and cartilage damage to his knee in the third quarter of the Super Bowl, injuries that prompted reconstructive and also microfracture surgery to repair. There are no guarantees he will be able to resume his career and he has no chance of returning this season.

The Patriots, already loaded at tight end with Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez, are banking on Ballard making a return — or else Belichick just wants to stick it to the Giants.

The Patriots will pay Ballard $540,000 this season to rehabilitate his knee. Ballard will be an exclusive rights free agent following the 2012 season, meaning the Patriots retain his rights as long as they make him a qualifying offer.

Asked about Ballard in the morning — when the Giants believed they would retain his rights — coach Tom Coughlin said the injury “Wasn’t any worse than what was expected — what he had was upfront from the time the surgery was done.’’

The Giants knew the severity of the surgeries and apparently did not think any team was willing to claim Ballard with such a difficult recovery ahead of him.