Osi needs to shut up

Remember a few seasons ago when guys like Tiki Barber and Jeremy Shockey were questioning coach Tom Coughlin’s coaching ability?  Where are those guys now?  Barber is retired and manning a microphone for NBC, while Shockey was traded to the Saints and is playing in the Super Bowl tomorrow. 

Let this be a lesson to disgruntled DE Osi Umenyiora.  That lesson is, if you keep running your mouth about playing time and putting your own needs before the team’s you’re going to be thrown out on your ass.  Maybe not right away, but be sure of this–Coughlin and GM Jerry Reese want team players whose strongest desire is to win.  And right now, that’s not the case with Osi.

He ended the 2009 season by complaining about his lack of playing time, in particular that his role was reduced to 3rd down pass rush specialist after the Denver game on Thanksgiving night.  You might also remember that Osi bolted training camp after an argument with defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan.  Of course, Sheridan was let go a few days after the season ended because the Giants’ defense was as bad as it’s been in like 30 years.  But still, Osi was part of the problem, not part of the solution. 

Sure, he had major knee surgery last year and missed the 2008 season, but he was a shadow of his former self in 2009.  And after venting after the Carolina game that things needed to change, a.k.a. that he was demanding more playing time or a ticket out of town, Coughlin and Reese downplayed that and said how much Osi means to the organization. 

Of course, he then said a few days ago that he wasn’t changing his stance, and that if he doesn’t have a role as a starter with the Giants or with another team in 2010, Osi is going to retire. 

I would not be surprised one bit if Reese wasn’t  fielding trade offers for Umenyiora as we speak.  Not playing up to your potential is something that can either be fixed with hard work and continued rehabbing of a gimpy knee, but running your mouth is sometimes a disease you can’t control, and clearly Osi has that problem right now.  So he either needs to shut up now, or he’s going to find himself in a different uniform soon, or worse, on his couch when the 2010 season begins.

Tags: Bill Sheridan, defense, defensive end, Giants, Jeremy Shockey, Jerry Reese, NBC, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, Osi Umenyiora, poor defense, retirement, Saints, Tiki Barber, Tom Coughlin, trade rumors