The NFL lockout has done away with the free agency signing period, but presumably it will commence sometime before the start of the 2011 season. Once players can move from one team to another, veteran running back Clinton Portis knows where he wants to land.
“To go to the Giants and get to play the Redskins twice a year after them feeling I wasn’t capable any more, I think that would be outstanding,” Portis said yesterday on SiriusXM NFL Radio.
The Redskins released Portis following last season, and he would like nothing better than to prove them wrong by lining up in the backfield for the Giants, which would allow him to knock heads with Washington, one of the Giants’ rivals in the NFC East.
“I forgot to even mention Eli Manning and the great line the Giants always seem to have,” Portis said of his interest in the Giants.
Will the interest be reciprocal? Probably not. Portis is a 29-year old running back on the downside of a fine career.
The Giants have decisions to make at running back, where starter Ahmad Bradshaw is set to become some sort of free agent, depending on what terms are decided upon whenever a new collective bargaining agreement is reached. Bradshaw is likely to be re-signed. Brandon Jacobs is set to make $4.65 million for the 2011 season and is expected back, perhaps at a reduced price tag. The Giants also re-signed backup D.J. Ware and in the seventh round of the NFL draft selected Da’Rel Scott, a running back from Maryland.
Portis said if he cannot play for the Giants, his preference is to remain in the NFC East. He said his first choice is the Saints, his boyhood favorite team.
But Portis said he realizes the Saints likely don’t need him after selecting Mark Ingram in the draft.
“I’m from Mississippi and I grew up a lifelong Saints fan and I really felt like that was the perfect situation to go into,” Portis said. “They went and drafted a running back, I think that he’s going to do great in that system.”
Portis has been beset by injuries and has played in just 13 games the past two seasons with the Redskins. He is 77 yards away from 10,000 for his career.