NY Post - Justin Tuck didn’t fully emerge as a player and a Giants leader until after Michael Strahan retired. Can a similar metamorphosis be taking place with Ahmad Bradshaw now that Brandon Jacobs is no longer on the scene? “It’s probably a good analogy,’’ Tuck said yesterday. “I never had Ahmad without Jacobs so I don’t know what the real Ahmad is in that light. I know he probably has the biggest heart of anybody on this football team and we know what to expect from him when he steps on the football field, banged up or not. We didn’t necessarily need him to say anything, we didn’t necessarily need him to be vocal. You can just see it’s kind of like a weight lifted. I know him and Brandon are great friends and he loves Brandon and Brandon loves him, but you can just tell it’s a weight lifted where he can kind of take on that spotlight a little bit now.’’

Best move of the off-season was addition by subtraction. Brandon Jacobs had that one monster year where he was an impossible tackle & goal line/first down lock before slowly morphing into a 265-lb east-west ballerina. You’re not Barry Sanders, bro. You’re just an all-talk primadonna who refuses to take any responsibility for flat out losing the hunger for bulldozing defenders. ”I was put in situations there where it stopped me from doing a lot. I was mentally disturbed there. My mind was a bunch of other different places worrying about things that were out of my control. I don’t have anything against them but it was time for a clean slate.” = pussy. Go ahead, blame the Giants for using a better option in Bradshaw instead of continually rolling with a linebacker-sized upright & lateral runner who crumbles on first contact. Only thing Big Blue will miss is someone telling Rex Ryan to shut the fuck up.

Whether or not Ahmad Bradshaw being “the guy” translates into a repeat of 2010 remains to be seen. He’s claiming to be as healthy as ever & already flashed his leadership role when checking #1 pick David Wilson. Yes, Eli referred to him as “the fastest RB we’ve ever had”, but that doesn’t mean shit to Bradshaw. “Wilson doesn’t get a chance to even get in there…you don’t play with Eli until you can block for him.” That means a lot coming from one of the best pass-protecting backs in the league on a squad with a suspect O-line (I’m looking at you, Will Beatty). Still, coming off a league-worst running year, productive carries are gonna be kinda important too. In #44′s breakout season, the G-Men owned the NFC’s #2 rushing attack. If they can produce anywhere near that level, the offense could sniff GB/NO territory. One thing’s certain though – they can’t run any worse.

@610Barstool