Giants sign Kurt Warner
By TOM CANAVAN, AP Sports Writer
June 3, 2004
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Two-time NFL MVP Kurt Warner signed with the New York Giants in a move that gives the team a veteran quarterback in case top draft pick Eli Manning is not ready to start this season.
Giants spokesman Pat Hanlon on Thursday confirmed the signing and said Warner would be on the field with the team on Thursday morning at a closed practice.
The quarterback is scheduled to hold an afternoon news conference.
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While terms of the contract were not disclosed, Warner is believed to have gotten a two-year deal that will pay him $3 million this season, including a $1.5 million signing bonus.
The signing comes a little more than 24 hours after Warner was released in a salary-cap move by St. Louis, ending an improbable run that saw the former Arena League quarterback twice take the Rams to the Super Bowl -- including a victory over Tennessee in 1999.
Warner has battled injuries the last two years. He missed half of the 2002 season with hand injuries. He lost his starting job last season after sustaining a concussion in a season-opening loss to the Giants.
Warner hasn't won a game as a starter since the 2001 season, when he led the Rams to a 14-2 record. New England upset St. Louis in the Super Bowl, denying Warner a second title.
Warner's agent, Mark Bartelstein, was not immediately available for comment.
Warner comes to the Giants knowing Manning is their quarterback of the future.
New York traded first-round draft picks this year and next and other choices to San Diego on draft day to acquire the rights to the Mississippi quarterback who was the No. 1 pick overall in the draft.
The Giants had hoped that Kerry Collins would mentor Manning this season. But the veteran who led the Giants to a Super Bowl appearance in January 2001 refused to renegotiate a contract that would have paid him $7 million in the upcoming season.
Collins was cut days after the draft, and subsequently signed with the Oakland Raiders, forcing new coach Tom Coughlin to search for a proven veteran.
Warner, who will turn 33 on June 22, is that.
After his injury troubles, Warner's days in St. Louis were numbered once
Marc Bulger was given a four-year, $19.1 million contract last month.
The Rams gave Warner permission to shop himself, knowing he would be released June 1. Warner met with the Giants last month.
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