It sure appeared the Giants had little interest in pursuing incumbent place-kicker Jay Feely in free agency and were content to hand their job over to untried and untested Josh Huston, a youngster on the roster from Ohio State with no NFL resume. The offer the Giants initially made to Feely was not market value and he headed out into the open market expecting to sign elsewhere.
Yesterday, Feely was in Miami meeting with the Dolphins, who seemed ready to sign him and cut ties with veteran Olindo Mare. Perhaps spurred by the interest, the Giants informed Feely they are preparing a more lucrative offer and now there’s a chance he’ll return for a third season in New York.
“They finally made it clear they want to do something,” Feely said last night from his Michigan home after returning from Miami. “Hopefully I’ll be in New York.”
Feely is in active talks with the Dolphins and Falcons. A representative deal for a kicker of Feely’s stature is in the neighborhood of five years, $10 million, with $3 million guaranteed.
It remains to be seen how serious the Giants are about signing running back Dominic Rhodes. What is clear is they now have competition for the free agent former Colt, with Rhodes yesterday in Buffalo visiting with the Bills.
In the first five days of free agency, Rhodes was the lone player to meet with the Giants and his visit did not spark any serious contract talk. Rhodes meeting with the Bills could pave the way for Willis McGahee leaving Buffalo; the Bills are listening to trade talk for him. Giants GM Jerry Reese has expressed interest in exploring the option of acquiring McGahee.
There was no visit yesterday by Rams receiver Kevin Curtis, who was scheduled to arrive before he changed agents. Curtis could be on his way soon.
Former left tackle Luke Petitout signed a three-year, $15.5 million contract with the Buccaneers that included $6 million in guaranteed money.