New York Giants: Jerry Reese Got It Right on Building a Championship Team

The Giants are just a few days away from playing the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis.

We've heard the hype from the media about the re-match from Super Bowl XLII. We all know about it.

On Sunday, that all stops and we get down to business on the field.

Personally, I don't think the Giants General Manager Jerry Reese gets enough credit for the job he's done since taking over.

Reese replaced Ernie Accorsi as the Giants GM in January of 2007 and really got his first full test of bringing in top-level talent to the Giants.

He was responsible for landing Ahmad Bradshaw, Kevin Boss, Steve Smith and Jay Alford, all key contributors in the Giants Super Bowl XLII win over the Patriots.

And when you look at the Giants body of work, it's got Reese's blueprints all over it. And Reese's formula for building a winner is one that shouldn't be taken for granted.

In this latest story, lets look at the NFC Championship squad and see how they were formed into one.

Less Than 10 Free Agent Starters Are from Other Teams

Reese doesn't really use free agency to build up the roster.

Antrel Rolle was the last major signing in 2010, when he came over from the Arizona Cardinals.

Steve Weatherford came from the New York Jets.

Kareem McKenzie came from the Jets as well.

Deon Grant came from the Seattle Seahawks.

Rocky Bernard also came from the Seahawks.

David Baas came from the San Francisco 49ers.

Lawrence Tynes came from the Kansas City Chiefs.

Chris Canty came from the Dallas Cowboys.

Michael Boley came from the Atlanta Falcons.

Those are really the major ones for the starters, at least. Reese once in a while goes to the free agent market, but not often.

Undrafted Free Agents

Who knew that losing Steve Smith to the Eagles would be a blessing in disguise, because it allowed for the emergence of Victor Cruz.

Cruz was undrafted out of Massachusetts and the Giants gave him a shot in 2010.

Over 1,500 yards later and an appearance in the Super Bowl, it's worked out for Cruz and the Giants.

Jake Ballard, who also went undrafted out of Ohio State, was given a shot with the Giants in 2010.

Ballard really didn't get a chance to play much behind Kevin Boss in 2010, but became the starter in 2011, and has stayed there since.

Henry Hynoski was undrafted out of Pittsburgh and the Giants signed him in 2011. Hynoski is now the starting fullback for the Giants and not only is a good blocker, but can catch an occasional pass.

Chase Blackburn was undrafted out of Akron in 2005, but the Giants gave him a chance too.

Blackburn also didn't make the original cut in 2011, but due to injuries, was brought back to the Giants, and has brought stability to a unit that desperately needed it.

The most inspiring one was linebacker Mark Herzlich, who went undrafted out of Boston College.

In 2009, Herzlich was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer. Herzlich defeated the cancer, but was undrafted. The Giants gave him a chance to make the roster in the summer of 2011, which he did.

Herzlich has mostly been used on special teams with an occasional start, but just the fact that he survived cancer and tried out for and made an NFL team is an accomplishment in itself.

Sometimes, the best players you can get aren't always the ones who get drafted.

Many Starters Weren't First Round Picks

Jerry Reese, just like Ernie Accorsi, likes to build this team through the draft and develop players.

Some of the players aren't even first round picks.

On offense:

David Diehl was a fifth round pick in 2003.

Chris Snee was a second round pick in 2004.

Mario Manningham was a third round pick in 2008.

Ahmad Bradshaw was a seventh round pick in 2007.

Brandon Jacobs was a fourth round pick in 2005.

On defense:

Justin Tuck was a third round pick in 2005.

Osi Umenyiora was a second round pick in 2003.

Linval Joseph was a second round pick in 2010.

Corey Webster was a second round pick in 2005.

Not every first round draft pick works out. You can ask the Raiders about how JaMarcus Russell worked out for them, or even the Giants and Ron Dayne.

But in the later rounds is where you can find some true gold mines, as have the Giants with their current team.

Both Accorsi and Reese did just that when it came to picking talent.

First Round Draft Picks

A first-round draft pick in the NFL is treated like gold. General managers do not like surrendering them, because a lot of good talent can come from them.

The Giants originally drafted Philip Rivers in 2004, but then traded Rivers, along with the third-round pick of 2004 and their first-round pick of 2005 to the Chargers to get Eli Manning, the first pick in the 2004 draft.

A lot of people questioned Accorsi's judgment for making this trade, but in the end it's worked out for the Giants, especially when they did win Super Bowl XLII and Manning was the MVP.

Manning is not the only first-rounder on the Giants who has made great impact.

Jason Pierre Paul was the 15th overall pick in the 2010 draft. Some people criticized the move because the Giants already had depth at the defensive line. In the end, drafting JPP was genius.

Hakeem Nicks was the 29th overall pick in the 2009 draft. There was rumor to the Giants trading this pick to the Browns to get Braylon Edwards. Thank goodness Jerry Reese did not make that move, because Nicks has been a star.

Mathias Kiwanuka was the 32nd overall pick of the 2006 draft (originally the Pittsburgh Steelers pick.) Kiwanuka has played both as a defensive end and an outside linebacker for the Giants. Kiwanuka was on the IR during the 2007 season, so Super Bowl XLVI will be his first time playing on the biggest stage.

Aaron Ross was the 20th overall pick of the 2007 draft. Ross was around for Super Bowl XLII and because of the injury to Terrell Thomas, had to become a starter again, and when he hasn't been injured, has held up for the Giants.

Prince Amukamara was the 19th overall pick of the 2011 draft. Amukamara got hurt on his second day of training camp with a broken foot and didn't debut until November. He's been learning on the fly with the Giants defense, and in his first game against the Eagles, recorded his first interception off Vince Young.

Kenny Phillips was the 31st overall pick of the 2008 draft. Phillips got hurt in the beginning of the 2009 season and had to work hard to get back to top-level shape. He set personal bests with interceptions and tackles this season.

Conclusion

Getting to the final weekend in February is what it is all about for NFL teams.

Under Jerry Reese, this will be the second time the Giants have gotten to the Super Bowl.

Reese took a lot of criticism in August when he let Steve Smith go to the Eagles and Kevin Boss to the Raiders, as well as Barry Cofield to the Redskins.

Many people predicted the Giants would finish no better than 8-8 and in third place.

And yet, six months later, look where the Giants are now. One game away from hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

Since 2002, Reese was a scout and Director of Player Personnel under Accorsi and then took over in 2007.

Since then, the Giants are 49-31 under Reese's watch with three playoff appearances, two NFC East titles, two NFC Championship titles and a Super Bowl trophy.

Many Giant fans after 2007 dubbed the phrase, "In Reese We Trust."

On Sunday, Reese could add to that collection with a second Super Bowl win and then really establish himself as one of the elite NFL executives.