EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – SEPTEMBER 18: Victor Cruz #80 of the New York Giants celebrates his catch against Ken Crawley #46 (not pictured) of the New Orleans Saints during the fourth quarter at MetLife Stadium on September 18, 2016 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Victor Cruz and his former team, the New York Giants, have had a tumultuous relationship over the past year.

Cruz said earlier this month that his former quarterback, Eli Manning, needs to “own up” to his alleged involvement in a memorabilia scam. Now, he’s going after the Giants organization, which he said purposely curbed his production halfway through the season so it could more easily justify releasing him.

From GiantsWire:

“I felt it all year long. Halfway through the year I’m ballin’, the other half I’m not getting the ball. And you’re just like, ‘what’s going on?’ It was like ‘ok, I see what’s happening. They don’t want me here anymore.’ ” Cruz said during an appearance on The Breakfast Club. “A lot of people probably don’t know this… Let’s say I played well — was a 1,000-yard receiver last year — it would have been more difficult from a fan perspective to cut me.

“If I am a 1,000-yard guy, they’re like ‘why are you cutting Cruz? He just 1,000 yards and five or six touchdowns. That doesn’t make sense.’ But if I have 500 yards or whatever the case may be, it’s a little easier on the fans.”

Cruz went on to say that he has heard of other teams doing the same with players so they can’t get bonuses, though he didn’t offer any proof.

While it’s unclear what actually happened with Cruz and the Giants, it’s clear that the relationship isn’t going to improve anytime soon.

See the full interview here:

[GiantsWire]

About Kevin Trahan

Kevin mostly covers college football and college basketball, with an emphasis on NCAA issues and other legal issues in sports. He is also an incoming law student. He's written for SB Nation, USA Today, VICE Sports, The Guardian and The Wall Street Journal, among others. He is a graduate of Northwestern University.