New York Giants Must Slap a Franchise Tag On Ahmad Bradshaw

I feel like I'm arguing for motherhood and apple pie on this one, but it needs to be said.  

The bottom line is, if the Giants want to be Super Bowl contenders (assuming that there is a Super Bowl), then Bradshaw is a must.  

The Giants could keep Bradshaw by simply re-signing him, but in the age of unrestricted free agency and unprecedented competition, applying the franchise tag is a great back-up.  

It's up in the air whether the franchise tag will even by available, pending union negotiations with the NFL.  Also, each team is currently only allowed one tag per offseason.  

What I'm trying to get at is if the Giants find themselves up against the wall and have the decision of whether to tag Bradshaw or not, the answer is clear.  

All the guy did was rush for 1200 yards, while Brandon Jacobs also had over 150 touches.  This two-headed monster could not have been overestimated 

The biggest competition, if you will, for the franchise tag is Mathias Kiwanuke and Steve Smith.  

While Smith tore it up last season, despite injury, the Giants have a pretty stacked receiving corp, even without possibly getting back Plaxico Burress.  

Kiwanuka was also an intricate part of the Giants last season, but not more intricate than Bradshaw's eight rushing touchdowns.  

Of course, the offseason all comes down to money, and as much as I'd like to see a couple more stellar defensive players or Smith come back, Bradshaw trumps all of those possibilities.