Justin Tuck is now a member of the Oakland Raiders, but only after the New York Giants didn't come close to offering him similar compensation.
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Tuck signed a two-year, $11 million contract in Oakland on Thursday. The defensive end admitted to the New York Daily News Friday that he would have taken less to remain with Big Blue, but the Giants' offer "was pretty much disrespectful" -- about half the amount the Raiders offered, according to the report.Â
"They wouldn't have had to match it," Tuck told the Daily News. "You know, at the beginning of free agency I'm going in thinking I'm not looking for a lot. I understand the Giants have a lot of holes to fill.
"If they were trying to sign me before free agency hit, or at least were trying to communicate with us, then I probably would've took somewhere around a two-year deal, $8 million, somewhere around there. But it wasn't even like that. It was like they weren't even trying to get me back. That made my mind up for me."
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Tuck said he felt insulted because he now realizes the Giants never wanted him back and should have told him that from the outset.
"That's the disrespect part," he said. "I don't want people to think I'm bad-mouthing the Giants. I'm not. I understand the business and I have so much gratitude for them giving me the opportunity to have my presence felt in New York and be the man I've become.
"I'm just frustrated with how it ended. I'm upset about it. But I'll move on and hopefully one day time will heal all wounds. Right now, I just don't understand a lot that's gone on and how they strung us along."
After spending his entire career in New York, Tuck said he isn't bitter at leaving. But his quotes display a man heading to the Bay Area with a newfound chip on his shoulder.
*The latest "Around The League Podcast" recaps the wild start of free agency. *
