EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -The New York Giants replaced Plaxico Burress – again.
For the second straight day, the Giants reached into the NFL draft to find a replacement for their troubled receiver, taking the tallest receiver in the annual college grab bag – 6-foot-6 Ramses Barden of Cal Poly – in the third round.
New York used its first-round pick on Saturday to take North Carolina receiver Hakeem Nicks and they were so interested in Barden on Sunday that they made a deal with the rival Philadelphia Eagles to move up six slots for the 85th pick overall.
Barden is a fascinating choice. The negative is that he played in the Football Championship Subdivision, a level below big-time college football. The positive is his production. He caught 206 passes for 4,203 yards and 50 touchdowns. His string of TD catches in 20 consecutive games broke a record previously held by Jerry Rice.
ube. It was one fade pattern after another, with many looking like the last-minute touchdown catch that Burress made in the Super Bowl in February 2008 to give New York its stunning win over the previously unbeaten New England Patriots.
“I think that’s only the tip of the iceberg as far as my ability and the things that I can do,” Barden said in a conference call. “Like I said, things are going to take work. The fade was in our offense for a number of years when I got there. We still use it today. I like to think we added more variety over the years. You can’t go wrong when you’ve got certain red zone threats and you just have to take advantage of them.”
The Giants used most of the second day to shore up an offense that faltered down the stretch after Burress accidentally shot himself in the thigh in late November and was suspended for the rest of the season.
New York also took Wisconsin tight end Travis Beckum in the third round, North Carolina State halfback Andre Brown in the fourth, one-time Oklahoma starter Rhett Bomar in the fifth round. Cornerbacks DeAndre Wright of New Mexico and Stoney Woodson of South Carolina were selected in the sixth and seventh rounds, respectively.
the Tar Heels.
Barden, who had 18 touchdown catches in his junior and senior years, will join Nicks in battling veterans Steve Smith, Domenik Hixon, Sinorice Moss and Mario Manningham for the starting jobs held last year by Burress and Amani Toomer.
Burress was left go earlier this month when the team decided that he was not going to change his troubled ways. Toomer was not re-signed.
“I would like to say that I’m a complete receiver,” Barden said. “That’s my goal all the time, to do everything you’d ask a receiver to do, whether it be down-the-field, intermediate, short-game, quick-drops, pass receiving, run blocking, leadership.”
A converted linebacker, Beckum caught 136 passes in his sophomore and juniors seasons for 11 touchdowns. He was limited to 23 catches as a senior because of a hamstring injury and a broken leg that ended his career.
While Brandon Jacobs remains the starter at halfback, Brown and Ahmad Bradshaw will fight for the No. 2 spot held by Derrick Ward, who was signed by Tampa Bay as a free agent.
Brown started 30 games for the Wolfpack, rushing 523 times for 2,539 yards and 22 touchdowns. He also caught 70 passes for 631 yards and two TDs.
Bomar threw 10 touchdowns in 12 games as a redshirt freshman at Oklahoma in 2005. He was dismissed by the team in August 2006 for receiving compensation for a job he was not working.
played the past two seasons, throwing 37 touchdowns, including 27 this past season.
The Giants only kept two quarterbacks on the roster last season – Eli Manning and David Carr. Rookie Andre Woodson was on their practice squad.
Wright had 30 tackles, five pass breakups and two interceptions this past season, during which he injured both shoulders. He had surgery on both shoulders after the season.
Stoney Woodson, who has good speed, had 27 tackles and four interceptions for South Carolina, including a 68-yard return for a touchdown against Tennessee. He started 10 of 13 games.
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