Victor Cruz Class Act

[mredskins]

Just officially became my favorite Non-Redskin player.

In my job, athletes are not very good interviews after 34-0 losses. They don't want to talk after 34-0 losses. They will find every excuse not to pick up the phone after 34-0 losses. But Sunday was different. Victor Cruz is different. This weekend was different, around the country and certainly within a short drive from Newtown, Conn., where 20 elementary school children and six women charged with teaching and protecting them were murdered.
"When I heard about the shootings,'' Cruz said from Atlanta, "I was just fighting back tears. I couldn't stop, all [Friday] night. I took my [11-month-old] daughter, grabbed her, and held her, and she slept with me Friday night. I didn't want to let her go. I don't know ... You drop your child off at school. A routine dropoff, parents do it every day. And this happens, and what can you do.''
The Giants and their ace wide receiver, Cruz, went to Atlanta to play a football game. In the hotel Saturday night, Cruz kept noticing messages on his Twitter feed. All were about someone named Jack Pinto. "Fifty, 100 tweets, right in a row, people wanting me to get in touch with the Pinto family,'' Cruz said. He found out young Jack Pinto, 6, was one of those murdered in Newtown, and Jack was a huge Victor Cruz fan, and so he asked his girlfriend and publicist, Elaina Watley, to try to find the Pintos' phone number in Newtown, and she did. At 10 p.m. Saturday, here he was, on the phone with the father, Dean Pinto, and then Jack's brother Benjamin, and then Dean again.
The conversations weren't long, because no one could talk very well.
"The father was taken aback that the message got to me,'' Cruz said. "I told him I was going to do whatever I could to honor Jack. And Jack's brother, he was very emotional, fighting back tears. He barely got any words out.''
On Sunday morning, Cruz wrote on Twitter: "Today's game is for you Jack.''

Tami Chappell/Reuters

On one shoe, Cruz wrote in black Sharpie: "Jack Pinto My Hero." On the other, "RIP Jack Pinto."
Falcons 34, Giants 0. Cruz wishes he, and the team, could have played better. But when the family says a murdered boy may be buried in his jersey, and all Cruz wants to do is anything to make them feel better, the game is a game. Now Cruz will do something, privately, he hopes, this week for the family.
"I just want to go down there and help any way I can, if I can,'' Cruz said quietly. "It's hard to know what to do. You just have to put your faith in God and pray."
There is no way to segue to football without seeming totally crass, so forgive me. Before I do, praise to the Giants, in Atlanta, and the Jets tonight, in Nashville, for remembering Sandy Hook Elementary School on their helmets. And to the Patriots, New England's team, for the Newtown helmet decals (right), and for sending up 26 flares honoring the school victims during a prolonged moment of silence before their game with the 49ers.
It's hard to know what to do.

Read More: Victor Cruz's Sandy Hook tribute, 49ers win, playoff update, more Week 15 thoughts - NFL - Peter King - SI.com

[JoeRedskin]

As with all things connected to this tragedy, words fail me.

Well done Mr. Cruz. Well done.

[mredskins]

Originally Posted by JoeRedskin

As with all things connected to this tragedy, words fail me.

Well done Mr. Cruz. Well done.

Shoe thing was cool but to call the family that close to the tragedy man that takes some courage. I know I would have hard time doing it.

[skinsfaninok]

Good to hear positive stories

[JoLo]

Always liked Cruz...Always will root for him even though i hate the Giants. He is from Paterson, NJ. I live 5 minutes from where he grew up.

[Paintrain]

Yeah, Cruz is one of those players where I will hate his laundry but respect the hell out of the player.. I love his story, his passion and even his lame salsa dance because it is a tribute to his grandmother. This story is just another bump on the class ladder for him. Respect.

[Monkeydad]

Cruz wasn't the only one. Chris Johnson had all of the kids' names on his shoes, and had a 94-td TD.

PHOTO: Chris Johnson Wore The Names Of All The Newtown Victims On His Shoes - Business Insider



I expect Goodell to fine these players...it really wouldn't surprise me. There's precedent.

[skinsfan69]

Originally Posted by Monkeydad

Cruz wasn't the only one. Chris Johnson had all of the kids' names on his shoes, and had a 94-td TD.

PHOTO: Chris Johnson Wore The Names Of All The Newtown Victims On His Shoes - Business Insider



I expect Goodell to fine these players...it really wouldn't surprise me. There's precedent.

I highly doubt Goodell or the NFL would do such a thing. These guys are fathers and are paying tribute. Jack Pinto was apparently buried in his Victor Cruz jersey.

[JoeRedskin]

Originally Posted by Monkeydad

Cruz wasn't the only one. Chris Johnson had all of the kids' names on his shoes, and had a 94-td TD.

... I expect Goodell to fine these players...it really wouldn't surprise me. There's precedent.

I think he certainly could fine them. I would sure as hell hope he wouldn't. I can't imagine the sh**storm if he did. In a world of rules, it is important for those in authority to know when to flex them. This is one of those times.

[ArtMonkDrillz]

If he does feel the need to fine them I would at least hope that the money goes to some kind of fund for the families or the Newton community. I believe the money from fines typically goes to the retired players' fund, but this is obviously a different situation.

Having said that, I'd be very surprised if the league didn't let these tributes slide.

[Giantone]

Originally Posted by Monkeydad

I expect Goodell to fine these players...it really wouldn't surprise me. There's precedent.

...such as?

[los panda]

Originally Posted by Giantone

...such as?

brown vs board of education

[jgalecpa]

Originally Posted by los panda

brown vs board of education

What does the decision overturning 'Separate but equal" education have anything to do with what a private club does with its members?

[JoeRedskin]

Oh.... you wanted precedent specific to the cited issue. I am guessing lp was just providing a random precedent consistent with his general bent towards randomness.

[jgalecpa]

That must be it.

Thanks for clarifying my haziness.

While were at it for precedence:

"City of Athens vs Socrates"


might also be a good precedent to cite.