Know Your Rolle: Antrel Rolle Needs To Shut His Mouth and Play Football

Last spring, New York Giants fans everywhere were excited to see their awful pass defense improve vastly with the free-agent signing of Pro Bowl safety Antrel Rolle.

Rolle was bringing some serious coverage ability to a team who has struggled at the safety position for years.

Unfortunately, Antrel Rolle brought some baggage along with him.

Since the New York Giants’ Week 2 loss at the hands of Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts, Rolle has failed to keep his mouth shut. Echoing things he’s obviously heard before, Rolle cited the Giants’ poor leadership and the way the organization is run as reasons for the Giants' Week 2 loss, and one would suppose, their other troubles in recent history.

But Antrel Rolle was not around for those struggles and certainly had no ground at that point in the season to be making any accusations. Sadly, Rolle is just another in a long line of players who do not know how to keep things in-house.

The Giants once again opened up the season in prime form, but crumbled at the end and failed to make the playoffs despite a 10-6 record in the NFC. Much of the collapse could be blamed on the coaching and leadership, but Antrel Rolle’s play did not help.

Elected to the Pro Bowl more so because the New York fans had his back rather than his play at safety for the Giants, Rolle’s year was hardly above-average. Rolle amassed 76 tackles and had just one interception on the year. His numerous blown coverages and missed tackles though, including a number of them during the epic collapse against Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 15, beg to question whether Rolle’s heart was in it all season, not the New York Giants’.

Again Rolle decided to “speak his mind” last time, thrashing Coach Coughlin’s personality and trying to credit Rex Ryan as some kind of coaching genius. Again Rolle echoed things that he has heard before, questioning Coach Coughlin’s demeanor and saying he should "loosen up." If Rolle’s not careful, he’ll be out of New York and could very well end up seeing the Giants enjoying another Super Bowl win while he’s sitting at home. Sound familiar?

Unfortunately for Rolle, this departure would not be on his own accord like Tiki Barber’s, perhaps making his words that much more difficult to swallow. Also unlike Tiki, Rolle’s done little for the Giants thus far and certainly has not carried the team on his back nor even played five minutes with them to have earned the right to be opening his mouth.

If Rolle cannot learn to shut his mouth and concentrate on improving his game, you better believe he’ll be on the first flight out of New York, and rightfully so. No team has room for underachieving loudmouths.