Julian Love isn't camera-shy about taking advantage of the NY spotlight
Julian Love of the Giants celebrates his fourth-quarter interception against the Ravens at MetLife Stadium on Oct. 16. Credit: Jim McIsaac
While one Giants safety spent time during the bye week on an ATV, potentially affecting his future with the team, the other was on TV doing the same.
Julian Love served as an analyst for NBC’s coverage of the Notre Dame-Clemson game on Saturday night, breaking down the action as his alma mater pulled off the upset win. Unlike teammate Xavier McKinney, who infamously fractured his hand in an accident while riding in Cabo and will miss at least the next month of action, Love came out of his adventure unscathed.
But perhaps no less impacted.
“I think I can fit into that role and do something down the line,” Love said of his first national television gig, temporary though it was. “I always pictured myself doing that kind of stuff. I had an opportunity to do some of it throughout college and it’s always been on my mind. I’m not super-focused on experiencing that right now, I’m trying to play my career and have fun doing it. But yeah, I had the opportunity so I took advantage of it.”
He’s certainly in the right place to make that long-established jump from an NFL uniform to a member of the media, a Giants tradition that goes back almost as far as the franchise itself and continues to this day. From Gifford to Strahan, Summerall to Simms, the fastest route from the field to a microphone has always been playing for the Giants. Even Eli Manning, who played the role of a pleasant flat tire for most of his playing career, now has an Emmy to go with his collection of Super Bowl rings.
Heck, two of the people Love deals with in his part-time dalliances into the business have deep ties to the organization. He does a weekly radio appearance on WFAN as part of the show co-hosted by Tiki Barber, and when he was approached by NBC about the Notre Dame gig, he reached out for advice from former backup quarterback and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, who now works for the network.
He knows that playing in New York is the fast track to where he wants to go.
“New York City is New York City,” he said. “I do realize the value of being in a big market and a big city like this. Not just specifically for broadcasting purposes, but just for life in general, I think. Come on, this is different than the average city.”
That is something Love will have to weigh in the coming months as he approaches free agency. He has said he wants to stick with the Giants for a number of reasons, including their faith in him, the increased responsibilities he has been given by a coaching staff that has been able to tap into his skills, and the upward trajectory of the team.
They seem to want him, too, given that they offered him an extension during the same bye week in which he was off in South Bend smiling for the cameras. Love turned down that contract and decided to wait until the offseason to see what his real value will become after a full season as captain and perhaps a chance for other teams to make their bids for him.
Lurking behind all of that is the specter of the second career and the realization of how easy it is to disappear in other markets. New York is the epicenter for what Love eventually wants; everywhere else is just the far-flung fringe.
Need an example of that? After three mostly anonymous seasons in Tennessee, Logan Ryan seemed fast-tracked for media stardom during his two seasons with the Giants. He was cut and signed with the Bucs this offseason. Same charming guy, same beaming personality, very different stage. He’s been relegated to the shadows of everywhere-but-New York, practically unheard from.
Love said he won’t let the possibility of a television career influence any decisions he makes in regard to his football career. That’s smart. As well-received as his bye-week debut was and as polished as he is as a 24-year-old budding broadcaster, there is no guarantee he’ll make it in the show business sector of football.
And this weekend he’ll be focusing on his new role with the Giants, calling the defensive plays on the field as he replaces the sidelined McKinney in that regard, increasing his value to the team and trying to help them keep winning.
The alluring bug of the bright lights clearly has bitten him, though. Once that happens, it’s a hard itch to ignore.
Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.
