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Geno Smith's dad says he received death threat before son's start with Giants

Geno Smith’s dad was threatened by an angry Giants fan before his son’s start. (AP Photo)
Geno Smith’s dad was threatened by an angry Giants fan before his son’s start. (AP Photo)

New York Giants fans haven’t been too happy in recent weeks. The club first drew the ire of its fans after former coach Ben McAdoo announced Eli Manning would be benched in favor of Geno Smith in Week 13. While most fans expressed their anger over that decision on social media, one decided to take things too far.

It appears one fan sent Geno Smith’s father a death threat just moments after it was announced Smith would start in place of Manning, according to NJ.com.

“I was just at work,” Smith Jr. told NJ Advance Media. “I answered and he was like, ‘Geno?’ So I just listened and he was like, ‘Is this Geno?’ I was like, ‘Yeah.’ He was like, ‘Your son better not start or we’re going to kill you.’ I kind of just laughed and then he hung up.”

Smith’s father didn’t seem too concerned about the call, telling NJ.com, “If someone was going to kill me, they ain’t going to call me and tell me.”

Smith said his dad told him about the call, but it did not disrupt his preparation for the start. Smith completed 21 of 34 passes, with one touchdown, in the team’s 24-17 loss to the Oakland Raiders.

Following that contest, the team fired McAdoo, which prompted another call from the man who threatened Smith’s dad.

“The same person called back but I guess they know how to flip numbers,” the father said. “He was like, ‘I told you he better not start,’ and then he hung up. I was thinking to myself: He did start. I still didn’t say anything. I just listened and laughed because there’s no sense in getting in an argument on the phone.”

Smith’s father did not report the call to the police or NFL security, saying it was a “one-time deal.”

The team re-installed Manning as the starter for Week 14. After losing his 210 consecutive starts streak Week 13, he’ll look to start a new one against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 14. Smith expressed disappointment over being taken out of the starting role.

While it was reasonable for fans to be upset about the team’s actions the past few weeks, there are appropriate ways for fans to express their anger. Calling up the family member of a player and issuing a death threat is not one of them.

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Chris Cwik is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik