Steve Serby caught up with Giants Pro Bowl receiver Victor Cruz before the Giants’ Sunday showdown with the Cowboys.
Q: What is it like being Victor Cruz today?
A: It’s a lot of fun. A lot of people think when you reach a level of, I guess a level of celebrity, especially being a hometown kid, winning a Super Bowl, that you can’t even walk out of your house anymore, but I embrace it. I go to the supermarket, I go to the mall. I’m not afraid to be seen. I’m not one of those guys that’s going to hide in a shell and nobody see me. Life is good, life is fun right now, and I’m just taking it all in because I know these days don’t last forever.
Q: Why were you a Cowboys fan growing up?
A: I was born into it, man. My dad was a Cowboy fan, and I had no choice. That’s all I watched when I was a kid. I was force-fed the Dallas Cowboys.
Q: Who were your favorite players?
A: That was in the Emmitt Smith-Michael Irvin-Troy Aikman days … Deion Sanders. … I loved all those guys.
Q: So you liked the fact Bill Parcells came to coach your team.
A: Absolutely.
Q: So you actually rooted for Tony Romo at one point.
A: I did (smile). … Yeah, I got to admit to that, I can’t lie. I did root for Romo. He was doing some good things, and then he ran up against those Giants that one year [2007] and it was over.
Q: How hungry are you to Salsa on Sunday?
A: Very hungry. It’s been a couple of weeks now since I haven’t been able to do it. I’m just excited to get into the end zone and help my team. I know when I’m doing the Salsa, that means positive things are happening for the Giants, so hopefully I can get in there.
Q: What’s it like being a marked man now?
A: It’s not very fun, I’ll tell you that. Everybody’s keyed in, everybody’s trying to take you away … more power to them. I want to be able to be a guy that gets what he can and makes the plays that he can make, and open things up for my teammates and my receivers and let them do what they have to do as well.
Q: How high is up for Rueben Randle?
A: He’s still climbing, man. He’s got a ton of talent. He’s still improving on his route-running every week, still improving on his mental aspect of the game, and I think he’s going to be a really good player for us for a long time.
Q: I know you’re big on grooming, what do you think of Eli Manning’s beard?
A: I like it, man. He keeps it clean. It’s edged up properly. It doesn’t look overwhelming like Brandon Myers’ — his beard is growing by the minute. But Eli’s looks clean. He’s representing Movember the right way.
Q: Do you think he’s ready to recapture his fourth-quarter magic?
A: I think so. I think it’s about that time. Hopefully, he doesn’t have to. … if we can get these things sealed away in the first three [quarters] or early in the fourth. But I think it’s time, and Eli’s ready to go.
Q: You expect Tom Coughlin to coach until he’s 70 or 80?
A: I think Coach Coughlin, if he has to be, like God forbid, in a wheelchair on the sideline, he’d be 130 years old coaching. He’d still be doing it, man. He loves this game so much, and you can see it each and every day out there on the practice field. He’s never taken a day off vocally, mentally, he’s always locked in and ready to go, and I respect that from a guy who’s been in this game as long as he has.
Q: The Terrell Thomas story.
A: It’s amazing. To see that guy battle through two knee injuries, and come back to be close to, if not the same player he was prior to both those injuries, man, it’s truly motivated me to be the player that I am, to continue being the player that I am, continue being the person that I am, because I’ve seen all the things he had to go through, I’ve seen him in those training rooms working out diligently to get back to form and get back to where he wants to be. He just serves as motivation every time I see him, every time I talk to him, every time I see him make a play out there out on the field.
Q: What’s the biggest stride you’ve seen from Prince Amukamara?
A: Just his confidence level. And he understands his role on this team, and just focusing in on that. And I think he’s finally doing that now, and it’s paying dividends for him.
Q: Cornerback Trumaine McBride will probably be targeted by Romo.
A: We have the utmost confidence in him. He makes plays all over the field. … He’s smart. He reads his keys. He understands what’s coming, and he does a good job at defending that, and I think that’s going to be beneficial for him, especially going up against a Cowboys receiving corps that likes to stretch the field and do some different things.
Q: Describe safety Will Hill.
A: He just plays downhill, man. He just looks to knock people around and really enforce his will on people, and you see that all over the field on film, he covers so much ground so quickly. And I love him to death because he’s a Jersey guy, and we got to keep those Jersey guys closer to home.
Q: What makes Antrel Rolle such a good leader?
A: One, he never takes a day off. He’s always out there playing no matter what injuries he’s facing, no matter what he’s going through. I get that from him, man. I’d die before I take a day off in practice, man. I got to be out there with my teammates playing hard and making sure that we’re doing everything we have to do to get better. And he does that, even from a vocal standpoint. He’s that voice out there that we always look for and that we’re listening for each and every day at practice, and even more on game day.
Q: You like watching Cowboys receiver Dez Bryant play?
A: I do. His physicality is definitely what sets him apart from a lot of other receivers.
Q: Describe Cowboys slot corner Orlando Scandrick.
A: He has good feet. He’s physical. He likes to get his hands on [you]. He likes to redirect the player to where he wants them to go and force them into cutting off routes early. So the key to beating him is to try to just use your quickness to not let him get his hands on you as quickly as he can, and just try to beat him with your feet as quickly as possible.
Q: How old is your daughter Kennedy?
A: Kennedy is 22 months.
Q: She doesn’t really know what you do, right?
A: She sees helmets and shoulder pads on a field, she says “Dada” instantly. She just knows that that’s what I do in some sort, way or fashion.
Q: If and when you have a son, would you let him play football?
A: Yes.
Q: Why?
A: Because I play, because my brother played, my dad played when he was young. I think it’s just the chain of how things go in my family. He’s going to grow up around it, so I think he’s going to want to play it before I even say yes or no to his question of him asking me to play it. So I think I’ll definitely let him play.
Q: Are you worried about the long-term effects of concussions?
A: I am. I think you have to be in this day and age of high-velocity hits, and the different type of players that are having concussions and things of that nature. And I’m worried about it. But you can’t live your life in fear. You just got to go out and pray for the best, teach him how to tackle the right way, the proper way, and just put it in God’s hands.
Q: Have you had concussions?
A: I have not had one yet (knocks on wood).
Q: How does your girlfriend Elaina feel about you being a sex symbol now?
A: (Laugh). She loves it. She loves it because I’m her sex symbol. It’s something that she can live with … but who’s claiming that I’m a sex symbol?
Q: Why is Elaina the perfect girl for you?
A: She just gets me. She understands exactly what makes me tick, the things that bother me, without even asking me. If something happens and we’re in the same room without her even having to look at me, she knows whether it made me happy or whether it made me mad before I could even turn and make a face at her. So she knows me inside and out.
Q: Has your mother’s life changed?
A: Yeah (smile). She gets a lot more phone calls being asked for things and stuff like that. She loves her life, man. She’s enjoying being a grandmother right now. That’s what I wasn’t here to focus on, especially being that I lost my grandmother, her mom, last year. I think she really wants to be a great grandmother.
Q: Do you change diapers?
A: I do change diapers.
Q: Are you good?
A: I’m pretty good. Pretty efficient. Although we’re potty training her now, so we got to get her out of those diapers, but yeah.
Q: Your visit with Jack Pinto, the 6-year-old boy from Newtown, Conn. — what did that mean to you?
A: It meant a lot to me, mainly because I just wanted to be just a voice for him to know that people are on your side, people understand what you go through, and they take heed to it and people are watching and listening. I guess if you want to call me a celebrity, I want to use that celebrity power to do positive things and to put smiles on people’s faces and to do the right thing. And I think Jack was just one of those things where I felt like God was asking me to do that … just overwhelmed my Twitter feed. … This is God telling me that I have to do something for this kid. … Elaina, my girlfriend, spoke to them I think just a few days ago, and I saw them recently, I think about a month ago they came out, and we saw them and spent some time with them. … They’re coming up to a game pretty soon.
Q: What do you think of Twitter negativity?
A: I just ignore it. I just laugh at it. They can say what they want from the outside, but no one’s in this locker room. … I just wave it off and keep going.
Q: Which Knicks are you friendly with?
A: Carmelo Anthony, Iman Shumpert, J.R. Smith is a really close friend of mine, Amar’e Stoudamire, Tyson Chandler. … I’m really close with Amar’e. Our families are close. We bring the kids over and play from time to time. And J.R. Smith I’ve known since I was about 13 years old, we played AAU basketball together. He’s always the life of the party. He’s always the guy just trying to make boring things fun, no matter whether it’s a chess game, we’re playing checkers or we’re playing a video game.
Q: Why are Jordan 3s your favorite shoe?
A: I like the aesthetic of the shoe and the story behind it. When they got released, he wore the black pair for the dunk contest in 1988, and then the next day for the All-Star Game, he broke out the white pair.
Q: Have you met Michael Jordan?
A: I have. We actually talk from time to time. I send him a text message here and there just to see how he’s doing.
Q: How did you hook up with him?
A: I got connected with him through my marketing agent, Carlos Fleming, and we were talking to him about doing something, I forget what it was, and he gave me a call and I couldn’t believe it was him, and I was embarrassed, I was losing reception. I’m going outside, and the phone’s hanging up on him three times, call him back, so embarrassed, but he was cool and we got to talk for a long time.
Q: Which commercials or endorsements would you like to do that you haven’t done?
A: I like that Blake Griffin Kia commercial, it’s pretty funny, man. If I could do a car commercial as funny as that one, that would have to be it (smile).
Q: Why did you say in GQ that your leather motorcycle jacket is your favorite clothing item?
A: When I was young, I watched the movie “Grease,” and … everyone had a leather jacket, and I was like, man, I wish I had a leather motorcycle jacket, and I couldn’t afford one when I was younger, my mother was definitely not buying me one at the time. And I was like, when I get older and I make some money for myself, I want to go buy a leather jacket. That was my dream item. And I went and bought one, and I think I bought the most expensive one I could find. Elaina wasn’t too thrilled about that. And then, I’ll have it forever. It’ll be a jacket that I’ll wear forever. I love it to death, and I’ll cherish it.
Q: You and Larry Fitzgerald are the two best dressers in the NFL?
A: I believe so. Larry always dresses the part. He always looks good.
Q: What’s your game-day routine?
A: I just wake up and lay in bed for as long as possible. I might call my family, I might FaceTime my daughter for a little while in the morning. She’s usually up pretty early. Head over to the stadium, I try to be one of the first at the stadium, although Eli usually beats me there. Get in the hot tub, get out, take a shower, go get a hamstring massage, get my ankles taped, get dressed to go warm up with Eli, get stretched by [strength and conditioning coach] Jerry Palmieri, go throw some passes two hours before the game with Eli, and then, come in, get dressed for warmup with the team, and then, there we go, kickoff.
Q: For a 4:30 game, what do you eat?
A: I usually eat some whole wheat penne. I try to eat a steak. We usually get some good flank steak in there, and then I get some scrambled eggs. I eat the same thing every time.
Q: Message for Giants fans?
A: Stick with us, and I promise you won’t be disappointed.