Former New York Giants offensive lineman Greg Van Roten always kind of felt like a New England Patriot, and as it turns out, we finally know why.
It wasn't the prior connection with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels or his relationship with Jets teammates Alijah Vera-Tucker or Morgan Moses. Nope, it was one cold Monday night in December that set GVR on his path to the enemy.
Van Roten gave everything he had to the New York Giants over the last two seasons, but it only took one 60-minute beating in Foxborough to turn the ultimate professional into a total convert.
Van Roten put Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man to shame, starting all 34 regular-season games and remarkably never missing a single snap. Yet, after sitting on the shelf for most of free agency, the 36-year-old journeyman signed a one-year deal with the Pats, admitting that a brutal 33-15 Monday Night Football loss to his new team last season was the exact moment he saw the light.
It takes a lot to shock an 11-year NFL veteran who has seen every scheme imaginable, but New England’s defensive intensity left an impression on Van Roten that he simply couldn't shake. When reflecting on his decision to join the Patriots this week, he didn't hold back about what went down during that Week 13 matchup:
“We were pretty fired up to come here Monday night, play the Patriots, and everyone was chirping about their schedule, and this and that. There's been a few games in my (11-year) NFL career where you play against a defense that just feels a little bit different.
And that was like one of those games, where they just they were flying around. They were hitting hard. It was a very physical game very early on, and I've been a part of a lot of NFL games, but that one stood out.”
Patriots gave Greg Van Roten a night he clearly never forgot
Getting beat belt-to-you-know-what by a more physical and dominant team is embarrassing, but that MNF loss might have been the catalyst for the Giants’ current culture shift.
It was painfully clear that the G-Men lacked the power to counter punches against bully-ball teams, and performances like that one help explain why ownership ultimately turned to John Harbaugh as its new head coach. Harbaugh's a size-and-strength guy through and through with an addiction to an unapologetic running game, no matter how ugly the game gets.
The "let's get bigger than everyone" shift also made a Van Roten return increasingly unlikely. Harbs and Co. overhauled the interior line to fit the new-look offense, drafting Francis Mauigoa 10th overall and signing 6-foot-8, 370-pound free agent Daniel Faalele (before he was traded).
With the mass movement officially underway, the door was all but slammed shut on a GVR reunion.
To rub a little extra salt in the wound, this is the second time New England has snatched a lineman from the Giants' radar, having already beaten Big Blue to the punch for Vera-Tucker earlier this offseason. Van Roten gave the G-Men everything he had, but business is business. We can respect his hustle while laughing at the irony: sometimes, if you can't beat 'em, you really do just join 'em.
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