Jason Pierre-Paul wants Osi Umenyiora back with the Giants, saying the team should meet the defensive end’s needs.
“I think it’s very important,” Pierre-Paul told The Post last night. “Give him what he wants, man.”
Pierre-Paul has spent the last two seasons playing on the same defensive line as Umenyiora, and he believes there is great value to having the two of them, plus Justin Tuck, on the same front. Speaking last night at an appearance at Macy’s in Manhattan, Pierre-Paul raved about Umenyiora and the Giants’ superb defensive line.
“That’s a great guy and trust me, a guy like that on your team, he’s a playmaker,” Pierre-Paul said. “Just us three defensive ends, we’ve got a couple more on the line, but I feel like we’re all on there together, it’s unstoppable. Who’s going to stop us? We’ve got the best defensive line in the country, and everybody sees that. So bring him back.”
Umenyiora has dealt with contract issues with the Giants and has one year at $3.975 million remaining on his pact. Once he returned from injury for the final five games (including the playoffs), he did not start, playing behind Tuck and Pierre-Paul.
Pierre-Paul, meanwhile, does not have issues with his contract. The 23-year-old, who racked up 16¹/₂ sacks, two forced fumbles and a safety this season, is emerging as the Giants’ best defensive player. He is on the third year of his five-year, $20.05 million rookie contract.
“I don’t too much focus on that,” he said. “If it was up to me, I’ll play my whole contract out. I just go out there and play football and I’m OK with it. I got drafted last year, first round, 15th pick and I’m happy. I’ll support my family, buy my family a house and then buy me a house and everything [will be] financially stable and all I’ve got to worry about now is football, just to play great football.’’
Pierre-Paul also believes the Giants are capable of repeating as champions.
“I think we can. If we stick together as one team and just keep playing great football,” he said. “Coach Coughlin, he coaches the way he coaches. And our defensive and offensive coordinators and special teams coordinators, they’ll coach us the way they coach us and we’ll be fine. We’ll repeat it. And then we have some guys, you don’t know what might happen, but we’ve got a lot of free agents, but regardless of that, guys are gonna come in and step up and hopefully go again and make the town proud.”
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Brandon Jacobs last night apologized on ESPN Radio for telling reporters on Tuesday that Gisele Bundchen, Tom Brady’s wife, should “stay cute and shut up’’ after she criticized the Patriots wide receivers.
mark.hale@nypost.com