John Harbaugh has made clear that the Giants were willing to leave no stone unturned in the Jeffery Simmons trade discussion, admitting on Monday that he called Amy Adams Strunk and left a message. It was an unusual step, but one that Harbaugh framed as part of a broader belief that teams should not be limited to a single line of communication.
Harbaugh said the Giants were open for any call, and his comments suggested there was no concern about reaching beyond the usual channels. In his view, the process was simple: if there is a chance to advance a deal, you make the call and see where it leads.
Harbaugh: no secret society in trade talks
Asked directly about the call, Harbaugh answered, “I did, I did,” before adding, “I left a message.... Because you turn over every stone. You know, gonna try everything. I mean, I just, I’ll put it out there, man, we’re open for any call. Anybody wants to call us or call anybody. Call.”
He followed that up with a line that summed up the tone of the day: “Let’s put that out there,” and then, “Put that out there.” Harbaugh said it was “kind of, like, fun to see the outpouring of interest in that,” adding, “I enjoyed it.”
The bigger point is that the Giants were not treating trade talks as a rigid, formal path. Harbaugh said, “We’re not like — we’re not part of any secret society oath that says you can only talk to somebody,” before adding, “We’re not in that. We didn’t get memoed on that. We’re not in that agreement.”
Why the call matters
Trade discussions often happen at many different levels, and this was a reminder that there is not an exclusive G.M.-to-G.M. network of bat phones. Earlier, the Giants apparently were not getting anywhere with Mike Borgonzi, and the article says the Titans did not hear from the Giants to see if they would match or beat the Bears offer for Simmons.
That context helps explain why Harbaugh’s admission landed the way it did. It was not just about one phone call. It was about a team willing to explore any route available in pursuit of Jeffery Simmons trade talks, even if that meant calling the owner directly.
Harbaugh was blunt on that point too, saying, “So like I said, anybody can call us. We won’t be adhering to that particular agreement.” For the Giants, that leaves the impression of a franchise willing to be aggressive and creative rather than wait quietly for the usual process to unfold.
The next question is whether that openness leads anywhere. For now, the story is the call itself, and the message it sends about how far the Giants were prepared to go in the Jeffery Simmons trade conversation.
