Victor Cruz and the road to redemption

In last year’s week 6 Sunday Night Football matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, the New York Giants got shellacked. Even worse, the team lost a leader, contributor and great player for the remainder of the season.

Down by 20 points, on a pivotal fourth down around the goal line, Victor Cruz ran a flag route and jumped to try to coral the ball.

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The Eli Manning pass careened off of his receiver’s hands, and Cruz fell to the ground, immediately clutching his right knee.

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Cruz would remain on the turf for quite some time, and as players, representing both the Giants and Eagles, huddled around him, it was clear something wasn’t right.

The injury to Cruz would end up being a torn patellar tendon, a devastating injury. The particular injury is nowhere near as common as a torn ACL or meniscus, and the rehab is rough. Even once someone rehabs, the knee could potentially always have weakness.

It’s the same injury that essentially ended the career of 2005’s NFL Rookie of the Year, Cadillac Williams.

“He is no longer the biggest threat on the offense, but that doesn’t mean he’s no longer a threat.”

Throughout his life, Cruz has had to deal with a myriad of adversity, so this isn’t anything new for him. A high school standout at Patterson Catholic (NJ), Cruz struggled remaining in college.

He started at the University of Massachusetts in 2005 and was red-shirted as a first-year player. The subsequent year, Cruz appeared in zero games. In 2007, Cruz caught merely one pass.

Football wasn’t his only issue, as Cruz was asked to leave the school on two occasions because of his poor grades. Once he learned from the humbling experience, he started playing like the star he was in high school.

A tremendous latter half of his college career unfortunately did not translate into getting a call on draft night. The Giants decided to take a chance on the player whom NFL Draft Scout ranking as the 73rd best receiver out of 276 in 2010’s draft.

The Patterson native would see a near meteoric rise to superstardom, albeit in preseason capacity. He torched the Jets for three touchdowns, and caught the attention of a mainstream audience. It wasn’t just football purists who were watching the game, as Cruz was even tweeted about by LeBron James.

But once again, the brief shimmer of opportunity was dashed when a hamstring injury cut Cruz’s 2010 short by 11 games.

In 2011, with Steve Smith no longer in town, New York needed a guy to man the slot and excel. Cruz did that and then some, as he shattered the Giants single-season record for receiving yards, posting 1,536 yards to go along with his nine touchdowns and plethora of big plays, as well as his signature Salsa dance.

He was a major part in helping the Giants hoist the Lombardi Trophy that year, but his play has taken a decline ever since. In 2012, he barely eclipsed the 1,000 yard mark, and in 2013, he missed it by two yards.

Cruz, who was elected a team captain for the first time in his career, got off to a slow start in 2014, as his play was littered with uncharacteristic drops and inconsistency. But that was the tune of the entire offense in the early stages of 2014. According to SportingCharts, Cruz dropped six passes, which works out to be one per game.

After the growing pains that can be expected from a new offense, Cruz began to find his footing. He posted back-to-back 100-yard games in weeks 3 and 4, and he displayed his signature explosiveness against the Texans.

The success, regardless of how mild it was, should bode well for Cruz in what will hopefully be a full season in Ben McAdoo’s west-coast offense.

Dec 1, 2013; Landover, MD, USA; New York Giants wide receiver

Victor Cruz

(80) runs with the ball as Washington Redskins cornerback

DeAngelo Hall

(23) chases in the fourth quarter at FedEx Field. The Giants won 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

The aforementioned ‘hopefully’ is obviously an acknowledgement of Cruz’s condition. He rehabbed hard in the offseason, and he’s ahead of schedule. Cruz was able to avoid the PUP (physically unable to perform list) to begin training camp, and he’s back running routes and catching passes.

On the first day of camp, Cruz arrived wearing a throwback Michael Jordan 45 jersey. The clothing choice was no coincidence.

“The return was definitely on my mind,” Cruz said, according to James Kratch of NJ.com. “When Jordan came back wearing the four-five, he wasn’t playing with people, so that is kind of the symbolism … I have been counting down this time 10 months ago and I’m excited to get back out there.”

Jordan’s return can be something Cruz is trying to emulate. MJ dropped 55 points against the New York Knicks in his fifth game back. It’s easy to see the basic symbolism, considering the return of both players. But it’s possible Cruz understands he won’t be able to shine in week 1.

In his first game back, Jordan scored a rather pedestrian 19 points, shooting 7 for 28. Not what fans were used to seeing. Jordan then scored 27 in his second game, hit the game-winning jumper in his fourth and then scored 55 in his fifth.

While Cruz could be back for week 1 in Dallas, he likely won’t set the world on fire. Instead, Cruz will need to get re-acclimated to the speed of an NFL game.

It’s going to be a process, and the veteran receiver knows what it will take.

“There is a difference from being in shape and then football shape, so I still kind of have to develop that a little bit. That takes a little bit of time,” Cruz said. “We will see how it goes. I definitely understand that I want to take it one game at a time, one step at a time, one practice at a time.”

Things will certainly be different from when Cruz last saw the field during the regular season. Mostly because Cruz no longer has to be the focal point of the offense. He doesn’t need to catch 10 passes and score a touchdown every single game.

He’ll be back, and the Giants offense will benefit from that, but the unit likely won’t live and die by Cruz.

Nov 24, 2013; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz (80) reacts after catching a long pass against the Dallas Cowboys during the fourth quarter of a game at MetLife Stadium. The Cowboys defeated the Giants 24-21. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

In Cruz’s absence, “The New Sensation” Odell Beckham Jr. became an elite playmaker, and he’ll be the number-one concern for defenses.

Cruz is no longer the biggest threat on the offense, but that doesn’t mean he’s no longer a threat. Cruz will be part of a talented, deep and dangerous receiving corps, featuring names such as Dwayne Harris, Rueben Randle, Corey Washington, the recently signed James Jones and of course, OBJ.

With Randle and Beckham likely manning the outside positions, Cruz will probably slide back into the slot, which is where he’s at his best. With teams focusing on OBJ, Cruz will find openings and opportunities to shine.

Before he was injured, Cruz was still one of the NFL’s best route runners. There’s fear that Cruz might not be the same player, but one of his teammates thinks he’s even better.

“I trained with Cruz for one day down in Arizona — and he just came in for a day because he was in town — and I’m telling you, this guy looked fab … I’m telling you. Remember that I said this,” Cornerback Prince Amukamara said on an edition of “Talk is Cheap” podcast.

From the portions of training camp that have been viewable to the public, Cruz looks ready to go. The main objective for this year is obviously make the playoffs and win the Super Bowl.

Cruz likely has some side goals, too. Winning Comeback Player of the Year, amassing 1,000 yards and returning to his All-Pro self are all on Cruz’s ‘to-do list’ for 2015.

Time will tell if Cruz can indeed fully recover from the devastating injury. Time will tell if he’ll ever be the same player he once was. But if history has shown us anything, it’s to not count out Victor Cruz.

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