Jeremy Shockey Exclusive: Giants Rising Stars, Miami’s CFP Push, and Tight End U

Two-time Super Bowl champion Jeremy Shockey recently sat down with Hard Rock Bet for an exclusive, wide-ranging conversation. The former NFL star opened up about the state of his former teams, weighed in on the Miami Hurricanes as they gear up for the College Football Playoff, and offered his unfiltered thoughts on the evolution of the tight end position. Shockey also shared his thoughts on Travis Kelce’s potential retirement, weighed in on which program truly deserves the title of Tight End U, and discussed his involvement with the Hard Rock Bet Party campaign.

New York Giants: Dart, Skattebo, Head Coach Vacancy

What have you made of Jaxson Dart’s start to life in the NFL?

I think the New York Giants have found their guy. Dart is a great player and a great competitor. I’ve always been a fan of his, even when he was in college, because he is an amazing talent.

The talent he has is clear to see, as is the competitive spirit.

He definitely has to learn how to take a hit or maybe even just slide down or go out of bounds at times. But on the other side, that’s just the competitor in him.

He’s looked great, but it’s been a hard season for him and the Giants. There’s been a lot of injuries, a change in coach, and a lot of noise surrounding the team and Russell Wilson. I’m sure everyone on the team is exhausted, always having to read things in the paper that are not about winning football games.

Does someone in the Giants organization need to remind Dart to make smarter decisions when running with the football?

I would be surprised if someone hasn’t already pulled him aside and had a word in his ear.

I’m sure the owner, John Mara, has pulled him aside to say, ‘Listen, we love the mentality and everything else about your style, but we want you to be our franchise quarterback for years to come.’

With increased safety measures for head injuries in today’s game, if you take any kind of knock to the head, you go to the blue tent and could end up missing time. So, he has to think about that as well.

If you’re trying to play 15 years in the NFL or more, you have to learn how to take care of your body by sliding and running out of bounds. The Giants are competitive when Dart is in the game, so he has to do his best to try to stay in the game.

His competitiveness is just second to none though, and I’m sure he’ll learn to be more careful the more he plays.

As long as he keeps doing what he’s doing, which is making incredible throws and reads, I think the Giants are going to be great.

Do you have any insights or preferences on the Giants’ head coaching vacancy?

I don’t, and I’m not even sure who is available at this stage. One thing that is for sure, though, is that the Giants are a great organization, so they’ll do their due diligence and conduct a thorough search.

It’s been unfortunate to see them struggling in recent years because they really are a great organization with such great fans who deserve to be winning.

Another Giants rookie in Cam Skattebo, looked impressive before his season-ending injury. What did you make of his performance and his physical style of play?

He was amazing to watch, and it’s awesome to see two rookies come in and play great together like he and Dart did. Hopefully, they’re able to play a long time with each other, and they’re so fun to watch.

Cam’s got amazing energy and power. It’s so fun to watch him on TV, and you can see how he energizes the whole team. I really appreciate the way he plays, and I’m sure the fans do too.

It’s awesome to see how big his heart is and he plays every snap with such courage and excitement. He’s another amazing young talent the Giants currently have.

I’m sure he’ll be healthy pretty soon, so he should be ready to go when next season comes around.

They have a great core of young guys on the team. So, whoever the Giants decide to hire will probably be an offensive-minded coach, and they’ll be able to have fun with these two amazing talents on offense. It’s going to be fun to watch.

Is it a breath of fresh air to see someone playing old school type football in 2025?

It’s so fun to watch as a fan. He is an old-school throwback type of player. I’ve been a fan of Skattebo’s since he was at Arizona State because of his style of play and attitude.

It’s great to see that there are still players who play like he does. I know everyone is appreciative of how he plays.

He and Dart have many good years ahead of them.

How do you see the remaining years of Russell Wilson’s career playing out?

He’s had some amazing years in the league, and I think he has been a great mentor to Jaxson.

Jaxson has had the opportunity to learn from a veteran, who was one of the best to ever play the game at one point in his career.

It just shows how quickly age can catch up with you in the NFL. He was an amazing player, but I still think he can play at a high level.

For Russell, it just comes down to whether or not he wants to keep playing.

Wilson’s Hall of Fame status has been debated online. Some believe he has played himself out of a spot in Canton. What do you think about this?

You can’t play yourself out of the Hall of Fame. The numbers you put up do not lie.

Wilson is a winner, and he’s a great competitor. I believe he’s one of the best to ever do it, so my hat goes off to him. I don’t think he has played himself out of it at all.

The Giants had to make their decision because the only way a young quarterback can get better is by playing, not just practicing. Eli Manning went through the same thing when he was younger and took over from Kurt Warner, who was a legend.

You need to get those game reps as a young quarterback. You’ll have some growing pains, but ultimately, you’ll learn from them.

New Orleans Saints: QB Search, Kellen Moore

What do you think of Tyler Shough’s first few games as a starting quarterback?

He’s handled himself great. He’s managed his game very well, and he helped the New Orleans Saints get a big win in Week 15 against the Carolina Panthers.

He didn’t play at the start of the season. So, when he came in and started, he had some rough moments. But that’s just growing pains. You learn from them and get over them. He has shown he’s learning by how he put his team in a situation to win against the Panthers, so it’s amazing to see for Saints fans.

Shough took over from Spencer Rattler. What are your thoughts on how Rattler has looked at quarterback for the Saints before being benched?

I think Spencer Rattler is also a good quarterback, but things weren’t working out for whatever reason, and they made a change. That change seems to be paying off right now.

Rattler is still a young kid. Maybe the system or coaching techniques haven’t been the perfect fit for him. He has definitely shown he belongs in the league, though. A lot of players react to different things and coaching styles, so maybe he just needs the right coach and system to suit him.

I know he has all the talent in the world. I watched him since he was at the University of Oklahoma, and you could see he had great talent. It’s just about finding the right situation.

How important is it for the Saints to be patient with Kellen Moore?

It’s very important. Everyone knew this was going to be a rebuilding year, so it would be a hard situation for a first-year head coach.

First and foremost, you have to have a quarterback that you can trust to win any game, and while they have someone who is promising, Moore currently doesn’t have that. The Saints haven’t had that since Drew Brees retired.

Getting a quarterback in this league is so important. There’s only a few who can almost single-handedly win you a game. If you don’t have one, it’s a long season. It’s hard to judge Moore properly until he has that franchise quarterback.

Moore was the offensive coordinator last year for the Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles. What have you made of their offense since losing Moore?

Sometimes it looks like they do miss Moore, but then other times they roll like this past weekend against the Las Vegas Raiders where they won 31-0.

They turned it on in that game and looked like the Eagles of last season.

At quarterback, Hurts is a guy who is very mundane and not very flashy. It’s rare that he’ll be able to win a game for you single-handedly, but he’s a grinder. He’s going to work, and he’ll put the ball in the best players’ hands.

They have some really good players on offense, that’s for sure.

Carolina Panthers: Bryce Young, Tetairoa McMillan

Has Bryce Young shown enough signs this season that he could still be a franchise quarterback?

I think that’s still up in the air.

If you look at the Week 15 game against the Saints, that’s a good example of why it’s hard to say that Young is becoming a franchise quarterback. It’s a performance that makes you scratch your head. It’s hard when looking at the Panthers right now. I don’t know what the answer is.

Young plays very well sometimes, but other times, his play and the offense’s play are not good.

It just shows how hard it is to find those franchise quarterbacks. Young is still a young kid though, and he’s got a lot of time left. As long as he keeps getting better, he’ll have opportunities.

He’s improved year on year though, which is good, but at this point of the season, he doesn’t usually get many wins. Later on in seasons, he either gets hurt or doesn’t play at a very high level, which leads to losses. He has to change this in order to be viewed as one of those franchise quarterbacks.

One of Young’s targets is rookie first-round pick Tetairoa McMillan. How impressed have you been with McMillan this season?

He’s had an amazing start to his NFL career.

The Panthers are really good at finding these types of players, and he looks like a great one. He has been crushing it this year and has been a bright spot on that offense. They have a bit of building left to do in Carolina, but McMillan is one of the players fans should be encouraged by.

They need to get a better level of quarterback play though. If you’re down a couple of points, you need a reliable guy who can drive it 60/70 yards, and Bryce hasn’t shown the ability to do that consistently. He needs to get out of that end-of-year slump he usually has.

Tight End Discussion

How important is it for young quarterbacks to have good players at the tight end position?

Quarterback-tight end is a very important connection, especially for younger quarterbacks.

As a tight end, you’re usually the easy read, and you’re right there. You don’t have to make crazy over-the-shoulder throws 40 yards downfield on time like you would have to for a wide receiver.

So, the tight end is always a good outlet to start the game, get yourself warmed up before taking those deep shots.

It’s amazing to see how the NFL has evolved towards using the tight end position, and all of the different schemes used in order to create mismatches. This began when I started playing and was amazing, but now seeing how they essentially got rid of fullbacks, everyone is basically an H-back. Hardly anyone is just a blocking tight end anymore, so it’s amazing to see how the position has evolved.

The position gets a lot of good press, and it’s great to play. It’s amazing to see the publicity around the position now that it has evolved.

Who are your favorite tight ends to watch in the NFL?

George Kittle is still doing his thing out in San Francisco, and in Arizona, Trey McBride is doing very well.

There’s so many talented players at the position now, and they all have different aspects of their game. I went to Tight End University this summer, and it was amazing to see how talented they are. They’re so big, but when they were on the field running routes, you see how agile they are too.

Travis Kelce is another guy I have a lot of respect for. He’s been in the league so long, and is still playing at a high level. So, my hat goes off to all these great guys at the position.

With the Chiefs’ disappointing season and Mahomes’ season-ending injury, do you think Travis Kelce is now more or less likely to retire?

I’m not sure. When I saw him in the summer, he still looked great.

I know his quarterback in Mahomes has suffered an ACL injury, but that’s nothing these days. He’ll be back next season after a few months of recovery, and I expect big things from him in 2026.

I would also expect big things from Kelce too if he continued to play next year. Unless he is hurt or gets injured, he can probably play as long as he wants. I think he still enjoys the game, and he is a hell of an asset to have on offense. He’s a multi-talented tight end.

He is just at an age where it comes down to how much you care and how much ‌you really want to play. It’s a decision that he’ll know, but he will be the only one who knows.

Does the strength of the Mahomes–Kelce connection play into whether you expect him to return next year?

It could influence his decision as I’m sure they’re very close friends who will talk it out.

I couldn’t imagine he would just hang it up after a year like this, though. He’s grown accustomed to winning with the Chiefs, so I would imagine he gives it one more shot.

It’s obviously been an off year for Kansas City, but that happens in the NFL. They’ve had a great run, during which they became a dynasty. It just caught up with them.

I’m sure they’ll regroup, evaluate their situation and move forward. At this point, I would guess Mahomes and Kelce will be teammates again next year.

Miami Hurricanes: CFP Chances, Tight End U

Miami was one of the last teams in the College Football Playoff field. How do you see the game against Texas A&M going?

I believe when the Canes are hitting on all cylinders, they’re a very dangerous team for anyone to face.

They played Texas A&M a couple of years ago, so they’ll know what they’re going up against. A&M is a great program. They’ve been great this year and have been well-coached on both sides of the ball.

I would imagine the Canes are going to come out and try to control the ball before taking shots. Similar to how they played Notre Dame earlier in the season. The Canes offense should have the goal of scoring 30+ points in this game, and they’ll want to start fast to make the Aggies play from behind.

We know what Texas A&M is about. They’re an amazing defense, and they’re great on offense too. So, it will definitely be a challenge.

I think the Canes will be up for it because they match up really well on paper. They’ll take their shots on offense, but they’ll put it in their defense’s hands because they have some great edge rushers who match up really well against the Texas A&M tackles.

I’m a little biased, but I imagine the Canes win this one. Either way, it’s going to be an exciting game.

I feel for Notre Dame after they missed out on a playoff spot. They had a great year with a great team, and hopefully college football figures something out where this doesn’t happen again. It sucks that they got left out, but it’s good to see the committee finally do something in our favor.

What do you expect of the Canes heading into the playoffs?

These playoffs are all about who gets on a roll.

Last year, Ohio State lost early in the year and learned from that loss before winning the National Championship.

When you lose, you’re not going to do a lot of things that you did in that game. So, I would imagine the Canes will avoid mistakes which they made in the two losses this year. Those two losses were not us.

I imagine the Canes will play fast and with physicality like they did earlier in the year. I would imagine Mario Cristobal has them ready to go.

You played on a team that was left out of the championship game, but rallied to crush Florida in the 2001 Sugar Bowl. Do you think the current bowl system will exist in five years as the playoff field looks to expand?

I’m not sure. When it happened to us, it was heartbreaking. We went head-to-head against Florida State, we won, and we still got left out by a couple of decimal points, while they got to play in the National Championship game.

But it is what it is. Unfortunately, someone gets left out every once in a while, and it sucks that it happened to Notre Dame this year because they were playing so well and had a really good team.

I think you could make it a little more interesting. You could add another tier of teams or maybe even make it more like the NFL, where you have wild cards.

I’m sure they’ll figure it out because more football is good for everyone. It’s good for revenue, and it’s good for the sport as a whole.

Based on their output, who would you say is Tight End U?

The University of Miami is the original Tight End U.

I didn’t really watch a lot of the Canes growing up because I’m from Oklahoma, so in high school, all I watched were OU games. Then, when I came to Miami, I watched and learned about their old-school tight ends.

Even the year before me, Bubba Franks was playing for Miami, and he went on to become a three-time Pro Bowler in the NFL. Bubba was the man.

Then there was me, Greg Olsen, Kellen Winslow II, and Kevin Everett, just to name a few.

Even look at some of the younger ones. I think Elijah Arroyo, who was picked by the Seattle Seahawks this year, is a great talent who could be really good.

David Njoku is another great talent. He came to Miami as a skinny kid from New Jersey and turned into a mismatch nightmare for defenses. He ended up being picked in the first-round and is now a Pro Bowler in Cleveland.

There are some others who produce great talent too. Iowa always argues and makes a case as well because they’ve had some awesome guys like George Kittle, T.J. Hockenson, Sam LaPorta and Noah Fant.

Notre Dame is also in the picture because they’ve produced tight ends like Michael Mayer, Cole Kmet, Tommy Tremble and Tyler Eifert.

Those would be my top three schools at Tight End U.

A lot of people try to pit us tight ends against each other, but in my opinion, it’s a fraternity, which is really cool to be a part of. Whichever school you go to, it’s just a pleasure to meet another tight end. These new guys are doing their thing as well. The position and play-calling of the position have evolved so much. It’s fun to watch these guys play in today’s game.

But, Miami is still Tight End U, in my opinion.

The Hard Rock Bet Party

What was it like filming the Hard Rock Bet Party with so many of your former teammates?

It was a great experience even though Edgerrin James was like three hours late for the shoot. But of course we waited for him.

It’s always good to see those guys. We were very close as teammates, and we’re still talkative today as friends, so it was awesome. It was such a good commercial, and we had an amazing time shooting with Hard Rock Bet.

It was fun to see those guys and I know they’re excited for the Canes game, as I am. We can’t wait until Saturday.

The National Championship is in Miami this year. Miami is also hosting World Cup games in 2026, and the city has hosted multiple Super Bowls. What’s it like if you’re a visiting player? How can you avoid distractions in Miami and focus?

When you’re in the season or preparing for a huge game, you can’t really leave the hotel or do anything like that. You’re under surveillance from all angles.

It’s a great city for sports, though. There’s a lot of fans from different backgrounds and countries, which is super cool.

The teams down here, such as the Hurricanes and Dolphins, have always been blessed with great fanbases.

Everywhere else, it’s cold. It’s cool that they play the Super Bowl in different cities, but no one really wants to go to Indianapolis, where it’s freezing. Putting these events down here in Miami makes sense because the weather is always good here. We have great venues, and Mr. Ross has done a great job.

It just continues to get better and better down here for sports. We now have Inter Miami, who play out of Fort Lauderdale. David Beckham and those guys are doing a great job there, and soon enough, their new stadium should be opening up. So, we’ll have a legit soccer stadium too.

So, this is a rich city when it comes to sporting teams, places and fans.

Super Bowl Success

You caught the go-ahead touchdown in Super Bowl XLIV as a member of the New Orleans Saints. Did you expect the touchdown play to be called in that game?

That play was a call from Coach Sean Payton. He was a really good guy. I was blessed to play for a lot of good coaches in my career, and he was definitely one of them. He was cool in New York with me when he was offensive coordinator at the Giants, before we both ended up in New Orleans.

We’d practice that play multiple times. It was designed to get a mismatch and see how the defense would react. I didn’t really expect Coach Payton to call it but he did, and I was just thinking, I have to do everything to catch this ball. Luckily, it worked out.

It was an amazing experience to play in a Super Bowl in Miami. It was also amazing to bring a Super Bowl to New Orleans after all the devastation Hurricane Katrina had left. The Saints are a great organization with a great fanbase, and I had some great teammates there. My time in New Orleans was awesome.

Did winning the Super Bowl with the Saints feel like a full-circle moment after you missed the Giants’ Super Bowl XLII victory through injury?

I’ve been so blessed to be part of these big-time moments in my life, from high school championships to huge games in college and the pros.

It was hard at the time when I couldn’t play in the Super Bowl for the Giants. It sucked that I couldn’t play, but it was awesome to see my teammates continuing to fight for that World Championship.

I wasn’t physically able to be on the field, but because of the six years of hard work leading up to that, it meant a lot. I learned not to take moments like that for granted.

Not being able to play sucked, but to see my teammates and the fanbase so happy, it was really awesome.

My injury was awful. I broke my leg, similar to how Cam Skattebo did, and I wasn’t really around because when I got surgery, I got a staph infection. So, I wasn’t around the team much. I was just trying to get healthy at a time I could hardly even stand.

It was an amazing run. I’d seen Eli grow and develop over the years. The way he played in that big game, as a fan, which I am like everyone else, I couldn’t have been prouder of him, the rest of my teammates and coaches.

When they did it again, I wasn’t on the team, but I was thinking, ‘My hat goes off because you managed to beat Tom Brady again in the Super Bowl. This is amazing.’