Reese calls Umenyiora's comments part of 'offseason chatter'

Jerry Reese moved to put out the fire quickly after Osi Umenyiora said the New York Giants general manager is making him look like a “greedy pig” for rejecting contract offers over the last two years.

Reese, who took to the air on ESPN Radio in New York on Tuesday, said it’s only business and there is nothing personal when it comes to his relationship with the defensive end. He said Umenyiora’s latest charges were “offseason chatter,” according to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News.

Remember, last year Umenyiora called Reese a liar in court documents, saying the team had not followed through on a promise to give him a new pay day.

“I don’t carry grudges,” Reese said, per the report. “That’s the offseason. That’s part of the job. In the offseason there’s always some controversies about contracts. It’s never personal. I don’t think it’s personal with respect to players. It’s definitely not personal with respect to me. It’s just part of the business.”

Vacchiano reports Umenyiora is “contemplating” skipping the team’s mandatory minicamp in June and the next step after that may be demanding a trade.

Umenyiora is due to earn $3.95 million this season in the final year of the seven-year extension he signed in 2005. The guess here is that Umenyiora would advise players against agreeing to deals of such a length in the future.

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Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune