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When the New York Giants selected Georgia native Evan Engram in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft, they expected to get a dynamic, game-changing tight end.
And in flashes, they did. But the consistency never materialized.
For Engram, injuries and drops plagued him over the first five seasons of his career and the bright lights of New York began to get hot. As a man from the South, he was somewhat naive to what he was getting into up North.
“I knew New York was a big market. A big fan base — a passionate fan base. Diehard. Crazy. New Yorkers are just different,” Engram told the 2nd Wind Podcast. “I never really took into consideration just how much bigger the lights were (there). You’re on a bigger stage. There are higher expectations and higher standards.
“Looking back, I was so oblivious to that. I was just so in my own world and doing what I knew.”
Engram said the reality of New York hit him when members of the media began to write negative stories about quarterback Eli Manning, a two-time Super Bowl champion with a key to the city. Then the fans booed Eli and it became a lightbulb moment for Engram.
“They were killing him,” Engram said. “That was the first time I actually realized where I was at. . . When you do good, they love you. When you do bad, they’re going to let you know. And they’re not going to let you forget, either.”
Engram expressed an appreciation and respect for how Manning handled the negativity and the tight end attempted to emulate it. But during an admittedly poor 2020 campaign — one where he ironically made the Pro Bowl — Engram says he lost some confidence.
“I had some key drops in big games. At the end of the day it hurt my team,” Engram said. “I had a bad season. It is what it is. I was getting killed.
“There was a moment where I kind of lost control of myself in that. Once you start doubting yourself, that’s when you lose. Because the people are going to talk about you. You’re not going to please everyone.”
That season, Engram says, changed who he was as a man and a football player.
“I went through a lot of bad [expletive],” he said. “That led me to where I am now mentally. . . I wouldn’t change it for a thing.
‘My time in New York, I wish it was better. I wish me won more games. I wish we were in the playoffs competing and making Super Bowl runs.”
Ultimately, Engram needed a change. And while he may still love New York, the Giants’ organization, the Mara family and his former teammates, Jacksonville has been cleansing for him.
“I wanted to be great where I got drafted. . . but that just wasn’t for me. At the end of the day, I needed Jacksonville,” Engram said. “I needed the coaches I had there, I needed the relationships I’ve built with the guys there. I had the best time of my life the past season.
“It was the first time in my career where I didn’t want to leave the building. It was a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, I’m in the building just staying because I want to work, I want to watch more film, I’m staying with Trevor after the day is over watching film with him.”
Engram was always an extremely likable person and that hasn’t changed. And as he noted, it’s a shame things didn’t go better in New York.
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