**

WR Hakeem Nicks**

Q: What do you make of all the ruckus the last few weeks?
A: That's your job. You all have to do what you have to do.

Q: Why didn't you attend the OTAs?
A: I'm not here to talk about that. I'm here to talk about me being here right now, so that's what I'm doing. I'm here. I'm happy to be back around my teammates.

Q: How healthy are you?
A: I'm healthy. I'm feeling really good. Go out there and run around a little bit.

Q: How much are they going to let you do in terms of what you can do up until training camp?
A: We're going to talk about it. We haven't really discussed it yet. I'm going to go up there and talk to Coach Coughlin today and we'll talk to the trainers and then we'll take it from there.

Q: What was the reception like today from your teammates?
A: Everybody was happy to see me. It's good to be back in the locker room with the fellas.

Q: Anybody give you a hard time?
A: No. Nobody gave me a hard time. They feel where I was coming from.

Q: Were you working out by yourself?
A: I was training in North Carolina.

Q: How have you been able to handle the classroom stuff since you've been away?
A: Nothing too much is new for me in this offense, so it's just basically getting back into the routine with the offense. We had a jog-thru earlier. I jumped in there earlier and everything is just like clockwork to me now with this offense.

Q: Was there a reason why you didn't tell Coach Coughlin you weren't going to be attending the OTAs?
A: Well, I feel where he was coming from. I could have done a better job at reaching out, but I did. We finally got to talk. We got things straightened out on that end. Coach Coughlin…that's my guy. That relationship can't go sour. I felt where he was coming from. I should have done a better job at reaching out to him, but I'm here now and they're excited to see me.

Q: Did you at all reach out to him during your absence or was this morning the first time you had a chance to talk?
A: This morning was, actually. But I talked to Jerry Reese. Mr. Reese knew what the situation was.

Q: How good does it feel to be back?
A: It feels really good to be back around my teammates and being in the locker room for the mini camp. I'm excited about it.

Q: Can you clear up whether it was contract related or not?
A: I told you all back in the spring I don't really talk about my contract in the media. No disrespect to anybody.

Q: How does it feel to be back working with Eli?
A: It's always a pleasure being out there with Eli and the guys. It's always good.

Q: What did Eli say to you when you saw him today?
A: Eli tried to give me a hard time, but that can't go but too long. He's excited for me to be back, making sure everything is good with me. I'm ready to take care of business.

Q: How are you health-wise? Is the knee good to go?
A: The knee is feeling good. I've been doing everything up to today. We haven't talked about what I'm going to do yet so far in this mini camp, but I'm going to talk to Coach Coughlin and then I'll talk to the trainers and then we'll take it from there.

Q: Do you feel like you've missed anything or something that would set you back?
A: No. I don't feel like that. Not at all.

Q: Is it something you regret that your absence created a distraction when you weren't here?
A: I never want to be detrimental in any kind of way to this organization because they've been nothing but good to me, but the distraction… The guys told me they don't feel like it was too much of a distraction. I took care of what I need to take care of and I'm here now and that's all that matters.

Q: What can you do about getting Victor Cruz here?
A: That's his situation. I talked to Cruz. He's doing good. His mind is in the right spot. He understands the business side of it. He understands the game as well, but he still loves this team and he still wants to be here.