Big Tuna signs off on Giants' moves

March 3, 2009 5:02 PM

Posted by ESPN.com's Matt Mosley

Bill Parcells on Chris Canty: "He's smart, works hard, has great size."

Dolphins executive vice president of football operations Bill Parcells was asked Monday about new Giants defensive tackle Chris Canty. A writer from the Newark Star-Ledger named Paul Needell basically wanted to know why the Dolphins didn't go after Canty if Parcells liked him so much in Dallas.

"Well, we drafted three defensive linemen last year and signed two free-agent linemen," Parcells said. "We filled our needs then ... Oh, Chris is a really good kid. He's smart, works hard, has great size. Of course, he played end for us but rushed the passer inside. I wouldn't see why he wouldn't have a huge upside for them. He played for Al [Groh in college at Virginia] and me, so he knows what Tom [Coughlin] will expect."

The Cowboys landed Canty in the fourth round in 2005, mainly because he had a bad eye injury that he suffered when a beer bottle was hurtled across a crowded bar. The Cowboys did all their homework and determined that Canty was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Why would it be [a concern]? It wasn't his fault. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Parcells said. "He was never any problem for us. Like I said, he's a great kid."

And without any prompting at all, Parcells went on to praise the work of defensive tackle Rocky Bernard.

"You know, that other kid, Rocky Bernard, is a pretty good player, too," Parcells said. "We had to play him a few times [in Dallas] and always had our hands full. He'll do a good job for them, too."

But let's get back to the original reason Needell was asking the question. Why isn't Chris Canty a Miami Dolphin? Well, I think Parcells realized (like Coughlin) that Canty would ultimately be more effective in a 4-3 scheme. But I do think Parcells is being genuine in his praise of Canty. He thought Canty had a chance to become a perennial Pro Bowler in Dallas at one point. In fact, he couldn't help but think of "Too Tall" Jones when he saw Canty line up. And that's a really good thing.