One month into the season, Jeremy Shockey has 16 receptions for a non-dynamic 197 yards, no touchdowns and none of those “wow” moments he used to create seemingly on a weekly basis.
There are moments when the Giants tight end walks quietly within the locker room, not fully engaging in the levity around him, not looking especially happy about anything, that famous swagger if not gone, certainly diminished.
You wonder: Is this all there is? Interestingly, it appears as if Shockey wonders the same thing.
“This is a young man’s game,” he said yesterday during a rare off-the-cuff interview session. “Obviously I’m not 21 years old anymore, getting drafted out of Miami. A bunch of things have changed, a bunch of elements, a bunch of pieces in the puzzle have gone elsewhere, it’s just different. It’s not the same as it was and it’s never going to be.”
If this sounds like the wistful thoughts of an athlete past his prime, well, that’s not what Shockey had in mind, but he clearly realizes that, at 27 years old, in his sixth season with the Giants, life as he expected it to be in the NFL is not what has transpired for him.
The days of running free downfield, of lining up in the slot and blowing past overmatched safeties, of plowing through arm-tackles for extra yards and stomping and raising hell on the field, those days don’t arise much any more.
Anyone awaiting an eruption from Mount Shockey might hope that tomorrow afternoon, when the Giants take on the Jets, is that game, but he has been waiting along with everyone else.
In each of the first three games Shockey caught five passes, but it’s telling his one most memorable moment came in a loss to the Packers, when he hauled in a 19-yard pass and in his excitement punched the ball out of his own hands, prompting a flag for a delay of game penalty. Sure, he did have a 21-yard catch to the Redskins 1-yard line to set up a touchdown, but the exclamation point has more often than not been removed from his performance.
Last week, he was assigned to block – an area in which he has shown great improvement – more often than he ran out on pass patterns as he finished with just one 17-yard reception.
“Obviously I want to catch the ball more,” he said. “If I’m asked to block I’m going to do that as hard as I can. I can’t change how I’m used or anything like that. Obviously I would love to not block ever and just catch balls, but that’s not going to happen.”
Perhaps the wear and tear has taken a toll. Shockey has never made it through a full 16-game season, although three times he’s played in 15 games. With bothersome injuries to his feet, ankles, knees and collarbone, the bolt or energy he often brought to the field is no longer readily apparent. At times it looks as if he’s bridled.
“They’re putting so many rules in trying to keep it a very boring game,” he said. “If I’m making plays, as I will, I should be able to show my excitement for the fans and obviously the team.”
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DE Osi Umenyiora (knee) did not practice once again, although coach Tom Coughlin said the player who amassed six sacks last week “made progress.” Umenyiora is listed as questionable. … WR Anthony Mix, waived last Wednesday, was signed to the practice squad.