Mere hours after the New York Giants knocked the Washington Redskins out of the playoffs to finish their regular season with a win, the team’s wide receivers — Odell Beckham Jr., Sterling Shepard, Victor Cruz, and Roger Lewis — hopped on a plane to Miami to have a year-end celebration, where they went clubbing (apparently with Justin Bieber), and hung out on a boat the next day.
It looked like they had a great 18 hours or so:
https://twitter.com/JustinWitmondt/status/815945165726744576
Now, in the sports media echo chamber, that could have easily become a firestorm of controversy. You can hear the talk radio guys now: “Don’t they know they have a playoff game in a week?” “Why don’t they care about the team?” But the Giants have refused to take the bait and condemn the wide receivers for doing what they want on their free time.
Head coach Ben McAdoo said simply, “They were off,” and Eli Manning had a wonderful response when asked if he had any concerns:
“I think as a team, we always pride ourselves in being well prepared. So when I saw some of those pictures, I was a little disappointed just because they obviously didn’t pack accordingly,” Manning said.
Oh? Looks like we’re about to get some salacious intra-team backbiting, you guys!
“They didn’t have any shirts, obviously, and (were wearing) long pants, no shorts or flip-flops or anything. So I’m disappointed in the packing and not being prepared for that situation.”
Well then, I guess that’s that. He does have a point — Who wears Timberlands on a boat? I hope they’ve properly weather-treated that fine footwear, or else the salt water will do some permanent damage.
(Via NJ.com)
