Victor Cruz (Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)

After spending the last seven seasons with the New York Giants, Victor Cruz signs a one-year deal with the Chicago Bears.  Cruz was a beloved fan favorite, not just for his salsa dancing but for his  performance on the field.  

Victor Cruz joins a receiving corps that returns Cameron Meredith and 2015 first-round pick Kevin White, though Alshon Jeffery signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in March. The Bears also added Markus Wheaton, Kendall Wright and Rueben Randle in free agency.

Cruz, who is now 30,  joined the Giants as an undrafted free agent out of UMass in 2010. Cruz started on the Giants  Super Bowl XLVI Championship team and had 303 catches , 4,549 receiving  yards and 25 touchdowns during his time in New York. 

But injuries derailed his career with the Giants, whom released him back on Feb 13. The Giants didn’t make any kinds of effort to negotiate his deal after a productive season.

Cruz Believes Giants Didn’t Target Him On Purpose

Victor Cruz believes the Giants planned to cut him well before last season ended and says his paltry numbers are proof. Recently, Cruz was a guest on the very popular Breakfast Club morning show, to air out his grievances. 

“Half the year I’m balling and then the other half I’m not getting the ball,” Cruz says on the show. “You’re just like ‘What’s going on?’ I’m like OK. I see what’s happening. They don’t want me here anymore. Because granted, and a lot of people probably don’t know this, but let’s say I play well, I’m a 1,000-yard receiver last year, it would have been more difficult from a fan perspective to cut me.”

“It’s hard to believe. Even just to think about someone coming up to the quarterback and saying, ‘hey, don’t throw it here’ or ‘don’t give it to this guy’ … it’s hard to even fathom that thought, which I don’t even know or think that happens. I doubt it,” Cruz said. “But when you look at the film and look at how it goes down, it’s the only way.”

Giants coach Ben McAdoo said there was “no accuracy” to the claim. Cruz did catch 39 passes for 586 yards and a touchdown last season. Numbers don’t lie. His production was down from 2011-13, when he averaged 80 catches, around 1,200 yards and seven TDs per year.

Cruz also thinks he was being blackballed because NFL teams thought he was more into fashion and  Yacht parties than football. Regardless, the Bears are willing to give him one last shot at greatness.