New York Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride doesn't sound all that excited about the team's acquisition of veteran wide receiver Brandon Stokley. Or maybe he just wishes the team had re-signed Steve Smith.
"We had wanted all along Steve Smith back and that was the objective, that was the hope and the expectation," Gilbride told Newsday on Thursday, the second straight week he brought up Smith's name unsolicited, according to the newspaper.
The Giants signed Stokley on Wednesday to fill the slot receiver position that Smith performed so well from 2007-10, and expect the 13-year veteran to suit up for Monday night's game against the Rams.
Smith, who signed a free-agent contract with the Philadelphia Eagles this offseason, will be a hard player to replace. The Giants tried Victor Cruz and Domenik Hixon in his old spot during their loss to the Redskins last Sunday, but decided to go with Stokley moving forward. That didn't sit well with Hixon.
"They brought him in to do the slot deal and it looks like I'm not playing slot," Hixon told Newsday. "I wanted to be there. I wanted to play. And it's looking like that's not going to happen."
Asked if he thought he was given a fair chance to win the job, Hixon said: "No, I don't feel that way. That's a move that they made and time will tell."
