Players come, players go and the offensive line is about to undergo another transformation, but the Giants starting right-guard spot continues to belong to Chris Snee, who knows nothing lasts forever.
“My number will be called at some point, and they’ll have to put another right guard in there,’’ Snee said last night. “I’m enjoying being the right guard and hopefully have a better season than last.’’
Better season than last? The Giants are coming off a victory in Super Bowl XLVI, aren’t they?
“We finished last in rushing,’’ Snee quickly countered. “A lot of factors go into it, but the big guys up front take pride in that. We’ll take all the blame, warranted or not. We’ll take the heat. Me being a leader of that front, I’ve got to get the guys going, myself included.’’
Snee never puts himself in the center of attention, but he was in the spotlight last night, honored by the United Way of New York along with Jets guard Brandon Moore and former Giants linebacker Harry Carson for their service to the community.
Following the season, Snee had surgery on his right elbow to clean up a problem that he kept quiet week after week, and he was eager to change the subject when asked about his rehab.
“I’ve been gaining my strength back and doing some work on the field,’’ Snee said. “I’ll be back there next week for OTAs. Good to go.’’
He declined to attribute what he felt was substandard play to the injury.
“I blame it on nothing,” he said. “I need to play better.’’
While Snee, 30, stays put entering his ninth pro season, the Giants have to replace longtime right tackle Kareem McKenzie, who was not re-signed.
“There’s only speculation at this point,” Snee said. “The logical thing would be to have [David] Diehl move to right tackle, but we’ll see.’’
If Diehl shifts from left to right tackle, Will Beatty would be re-inserted into the starting left-tackle spot. Beatty missed the final six regular-season games and the entire playoff run with a detached retina.
The Giants tried to refortify their stagnant rushing attack by taking David Wilson in the first round of the NFL Draft and added receiver Rueben Randle in the second round and tight end Adrien Robinson in the fourth. They also selected two offensive linemen, Brandon Mosley and Matt McCants.
“It is exciting, but then again I’ve seen rookies come and go, you can’t really count on them until you see what they can do on the field,’’ Snee said. “Time will tell, and then we’ll get excited or move on again. They come in and they have to prove to us they can play and they know the offense and can catch on quickly.’’