G.J. Kinne, was added to the Giants practice squad in September – as a safety – after playing QB in Philadelphia for two seasons. Photo by Al Thompson

If you want to check on the whereabouts a recently released Eagles player you were following, you may want to take a look at the New York Football Giants roster first.

Over the past few years, it seems a number of Birds booted from the nest have found a home at the other end of the Jersey Turnpike with arguably the Eagles biggest rival, Big Blue.

Included among the most recent transfers are defensive back Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, defensive lineman Cullen Jenkins, offensive lineman Dallas Reynolds and quarterback/wide receiver/safety G.J. Kinne, who was added to the Giants practice squad in September.

Can’t leave out Mike Patterson, a defensive tackle who was drafted by the Eagles in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft, released after the 2012 season and picked up by the Giants where he played for two seasons before being released.

Kinne and Reynolds are interesting just because of their survival stories.

Kinne spent two seasons on the Philadelphia practice squad. His life could be a movie or made for TV story on football player who had every thing in life and on the field throw at him and he just kept coming up smiling.

Kinne was born in Mesquite, Texas, a suburb just east of Dallas, to Gary Joe Kinne and Jocelyne Carter.

His father was a former standout linebacker at Baylor University and later – after a few years as an assistant – his Dad accepted the head coaching job at Canton High School in East Texas, a town about 70 miles east of Dallas.

Kinne became the starting quarterback of the Canton varsity football team as a freshman where he played well and led his team to the Class AAA area finals with an 8–4 record.

As a sophomore he led Canton to another good season with an 8–2 record but narrowly missed the playoffs.
In the spring of 2005, Kinne’s father, who was also his coach at Canton High, was shot in the chest by the disgruntled parent of one of the players he coached. The parent who tried to kill Kinne, Sr. was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

After the shooting, Kinne, Jr. stayed one more year at Canton High, leading the team to its best season in school history with a 12–2 record, losing to Tatum High School, the eventual state champion.

After the 2005 season, Kinne Sr., who had recovered from his wounds, accepted a job at Baylor.
Kinne, Jr. then decided to move to Gilmer, Texas about 70 miles to the east of Canton, to live with his mother and step-father.

Kinne enrolled at Gilmer High School and became the starting quarterback, leading the Buckeyes to a 10-0 record, but was upset in the first round of the playoffs by Liberty-Eylau High School.

He finished his career with amazing stats: 11,695 passing yards and 130 touchdown passes. Kinne, Jr. also rushed 3,327 yards with 48 touchdowns.

After a successful career at Tulsa (after transferring from Texas), Kinne signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent on April 28, 2012. He was waived on June 28.

Undaunted, Kinne joined the roster of the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League for their 2012 season. The United Football League folded later that year.

Kinne then signed with the San Antonio Talons of the Arena Football League in December 2012.
That gig didn’t last long, on February 28, 2013, Kinne signed with the Eagles, and was released on August 30, 2013.

On October 22, 2013, the 6-foot-2, 218 pounder was re-signed to the Eagles practice squad because of injuries to both of its top quarterbacks, Michael Vick and Nick Foles.

Kinne was signed to a futures contract with the Eagles in January 2014. He was released on August 30, but signed to the practice squad the next day. Kinne signed a futures contract with the Eagles on December 30, 2014. He converted to wide receiver in May 2015. On Sunday August 30, 2015, Kinne was again waived by the Eagles.

Got all that?

“The Eagles released me, I want to thank the Eagles for my time there,” Kinne said recently. “I had an awesome time there. I loved every bit of it.
“Thankfully the Giants picked me up on their practice squad. I got cut after week one but they told me they were going to bring me back and they did.”

The Giants are taking a look at him, according to Kinne, for defense, as a safety.

“Growing up I always played both ways,” Kinne said. “Little League, middle school…I played a little both ways in high school. In college it was exclusively quarterback and my first years in the pros as a quarterback then last summer as a receiver.”

Kinne said Eagles head coach Chip Kelly and then Eagles quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave went to bat for him to land him on another NFL team, offering practice film of Kinne as a scout player.

“Chip and Bill Musgrave when I was here I did a lot of scout team reps there,” Kinne recalled. “I was an extra body a lot times on the scout team I would play receiver then do some safety stuff. I’d make some plays out there and I guess they (The Giants) thought I could play, they saw some potential…it’s all good.”

Kinne only had to look down a few locker stalls to see another NFL survivor in center Dallas Reynolds.

Dallas Reynolds (61) blocking during a game against the Eagles in 2015.
Photo by Andy Lewis / contrastphtography.com

Kinne said he admired Reynolds resolve to find a way to stay in the NFL for seven years now.

“That’s what I’m trying to do here,” Kinne said. “Every day is a blessing to have a job.”
His trick to surviving?

“I think it’s just working hard,” Kinne said. “And doing what the coaches ask you to do. Everyone has a role on the team. It might not be what you want, you just have to go out there and do it to the best of your ability.”

Reynolds did not have the real-life drama Kinne overcame, but his path to the NFL and staying there was as tough as anyone’s.

Reynolds was born in Salt Lake City, Utah and attended Timpview High School in Provo, Utah where he earned all-region honors during his junior and senior seasons.

Reynolds played college football at BYU. He earned first-team All-Mountain West honors during his junior and senior years, playing left offensive tackle during his junior year and center during his senior year. He started in 50 games for the Cougars and never missed a game.

Reynolds was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Eagles on April 27, 2009.

Like Kinne, you need a computer to keep track of all the times he was signed and waived.

He was waived on September 5, 2009, but was re-signed to the Eagles’ practice squad on October 21.
Reynolds was promoted to the active roster on December 29 after Jamaal Jackson was placed on injured reserve with a torn ACL.

He was waived on September 4, 2010 during final cuts, and re-signed to the team’s practice squad on September 5. He spent the entire season on the practice squad, and was re-signed to a future contract on January 10, 2011. He was waived again during final cuts on September 22, 2011.

Reynolds was re-signed to the teams practice squad the following day. At the conclusion of the 2011 season, his practice squad contract expired and he became a free agent. He was re-signed to the active roster on January 5, 2012.

Get all that?

In game two of the 2012 season, Reynolds saw his first NFL action when he replaced injured starting center Jason Kelce. Reynolds started 14 games for the Eagles in 2012.

New guy in town? Reynolds was waived by the Eagles on Aug. 30, 2013…Signed by the Giants on Oct. 1, 2013…Waived by the Giants on Oct. 5, 2013…Re-signed by the Giants on Oct. 24, 2013 where he has been ever since as a back up.

“You have to work hard every day,” said Reynolds, who is is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “You may be asked to do things you haven’t been asked to do before in your career. You have to do the best you can.”

Even at 31, Reynolds says he begins each day like it is his rookie year.

“For me I just try and work hard, prepare and study,” Reynolds said. “You have to train like you are going to be a starter and contribute…you just have to stick it out.”

During the Giants training camp this summer, second-year center Weston Richburg got hurt.

With free agent signee Brett Jones from the Canadian Football League showing he could not yet play with the first or second units, Reynolds was thrust into a role of playing center for about 75 percent of the snaps in practice.

When Richburg returned a little over a week later, Reynolds was asked to go back to his role as a backup.

No big deal for the 6-foot-4, 320-pounder.

“You’ll do whatever you can to stay here,” Reynolds said. “Whether they ask you to play left guard or right guard, center tight end…whatever you have to do you have to do it and you’ve got to do it well.
“Coaches are going to coach you. You have to be able to take that and apply it and learn and get better.
It may not go the way you wanted it to, or you thought it was going to go, you just to have thick skin and keep trucking.”

Reynolds feel like he has settled into a great gig with the Giants. He knows his role, does it well and plans on keeping it that way.

“I just want to be part of the group, help the team where I can,” Reynolds said. “I love it here. I love the group of guys we got, the o-line’s close. I love being here. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. Any way I can contribute, I am going to do the best I can.”

Much of the stats and other facts were from Wikipedia and giants.com