Getty New York Giants SB Champion David Tyree
David Tyree will forever be a New York Giant in spirit. However, his time with the organization serving as the director of player development has officially come to an end.
The Super Bowl XLII hero confirmed the move with ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, ending a six-year run serving in the position, starting back in 2014.
“I was honored to serve and impact the players for the past six years for the most iconic franchise in NFL history,” Tyree told Raanan. “I wish the Giants and Coach [Joe] Judge the best moving forward into the 2020 season. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to my personal and professional growth along the way. Once a Giant always a Giant.”
According to Raanan, the reasoning behind the move involves a complete restructure to the team’s player engagement program. Director of wellness and clinical services, Dr. Lani Lawrence, will take over as the head of player engagement/development working closely alongside assistant director of player engagement, Ashley Lynn. Outside linebackers coach and senior assistant, Brett Bielema, as well as special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey, will also be heavily involved.
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Remembering David Tyree
Tyree, a sixth-round pick for the Giants back in 2003, is forever cemented in Giants history for his Super Bowl XLII heroics that helped New York defeat the then-undefeated New England Patriots, 17-14 in 2008.
Hauling in just one reception over his first seven career playoff games, Tyree burst on to the scene during the big game. The wideout finished the Super Bowl with three receptions for 43-yards and one touchdown, including pinning a pass to his helmet to keep alive an eventual game-winning drive for the Giants.
Tyree spent a total of six seasons with the Giants as a player. However, he never caught another pass in his NFL career following the famous reception mentioned above. He missed New York’s post-Super Bowl season with a knee injury. In 2009, he spent 10 games with the Baltimore Ravens, failing to register a single offensive statistic.
Over his 83 career regular-season appearances, the now-40-year-old Syracuse alumn accumulated a total of 54 catches for 650 yards and four touchdowns.
While Tyree’s Super Bowl catch will be what Giants fans most remember him for, he made his living in the NFL mainly as a special teams ace, earning a Pro Bowl berth and First-Team All-Pro selection in 2005.
Raanan’s report also notes that Tyree will now shift his focus to a “Clean Juice” shop he’s been opening in Morristown, New Jersey. The company signed Tyree to a franchise agreement back in August of 2019 in hopes of opening their first store in the state.
Here’s Landon Eckles, the company’s co-founder and chief executive on the deal with Tyree:
“We are incredibly blessed to have David and his lovely wife Leilah become a part of our Clean Juice family, not just because of his on-field accolades and selfless reputation, but because of their shared commitment to our mission, core values and of course, premium organic products.” Eckles went on to add that “while we’re proud to open a location in New Jersey, it’s more important that we have added new family members who truly embody our ‘healthy in body and strong in spirit’ mantra.”