Giants' Victor Cruz On WFAN: 'I Wanted To Stay Here'

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Up until Wednesday, Victor Cruz's future remained murky. But he knew one thing: He wanted to remain a Giant.

"Obviously, being a guy that's from this area, born and raised 15 minutes from Giants Stadium, I wanted to stay here," the wide receiver told WFAN's Mike Francesa on Thursday, a day after agreeing to a one-year contract that saw his salary get slashed from $7.9 million to $1.3 million. "This is where I belonged. This is where I made a name for myself. This is where the fans respected me and showed me the most love that I could possibly imagine. So I wanted to stay here, but as you know, this is a business, and you don't know what's going to happen."

Cruz said he thought about the possibility that he might have to look for work elsewhere. But in the end, it all worked out.

"I feel ecstatic about where we're headed," Cruz said. "I'm excited to get the contract stuff squared away so I can get back out there. And I'm excited for the opportunity to play some football again, man. It's been a little bit of a time since I've been back out there."

Cruz, 29, hasn't played in a game since tearing his patellar tendon in October 2014. A calf injury kept him out all of last season.

Such devastating injuries tend to take their toll on the market value of a Pro Bowl wide receiver. He said he understand the Giants' request for him to play for a smaller salary.

"I think the Giants were fair," Cruz said. "Obviously you have to understand that you have to be realistic -- haven't played in two years and there's a cap space and they want to get better. ... But at the same time, I have to take care of my family."

As for his recovery, Cruz said he's "feeling great."

"I'm working out each and every day," he said. "The calf is back to a hundred percent. The knee is good. So I'm just working on building the strength back in both of my legs and making sure I'm not just a hundred percent by the time the season begins and training camp and all of that, but remaining a hundred percent throughout the season."