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NFL Novels
The Cut
After only his second year with the New York Giants, T. J. Brookman has become the best tight end in professional football. His stats are nothing short of amazing - and what’s even more amazing is that he was only a sixth-round pick in the first place. With one season remaining on his rookie contract, his agent, Barry Sturtz, wants to renegotiate and get a more lucrative deal - a common practice among players who have exceeded expectations.
But the Giants refuse. They want Brookman to play through his last year, then they’ll talk about a new contract. Sturtz, however, doesn’t trust them. He wants the deal now—and if he doesn’t get it, he’s going to instruct T.J. to boycott the team’s upcoming training camp. Head coach Alan Gray doesn’t flinch at the threat—if T.J. doesn’t show, he says, they’ll simply bench him. Sturtz thinks it’s a bluff - the Giants have had problems with offensive production, and T.J. is their only bright spot. But Gray insists he’s serious.
No one is more stunned by this development than offensive coordinator Dale Greenwood. Having struggled in polite subordination under Gray’s megalomaniacal leadership, the talented Greenwood is concerned that he will now lose his most productive receiver. He suspects Gray’s true motivation is that he simply doesn’t want to spend the money on a tight end - Gray is a defensive-minded coach with little interest in the offensive side of the ball.
What Gray really wants is for everything to stay just the way it is. And to create the necessary leverage, he orders Greenwood to bring in three “camp bodies” - decoys, essentially - to compete for T.J.’s job. Greenwood has no choice but to comply, and he assembles a trio of unsigned players from the bottomless pool of league wannabes.
What no one anticipates, however, is that these three recruits have more drive and talent than anyone expected. Delighted, Gray believes Sturtz will soon be at his mercy. But neither Sturtz nor any the three hopefuls are willing to be a part of Alan Gray’s plan. Many variables are in play here, both on and off the field. And as any student of the game knows, there are more losers than winners on the last day of preseason - a day known as the Cut.
“One of the hardest parts about covering the NFL is getting inside the real nitty-gritty stories of today—holdouts, players reaching the end of the line, how family issues impact play on the field. Wil Mara has done a terrific and insightful job in 'The Cut' of taking you inside what really happens in the seamy side of modern pro football.”
- Peter King, Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated
“'The Cut' is like a summer raft trip that takes you deep inside the holdout of an NFL star, and shows you the waves its causes in the locker room and the front office. Wil Mara does a great job of going inside an NFL issue, giving the reader the true-life experience of what happens on a team. It’s fiction meeting reality in an entertaining fashion.”
- John Clayton, ESPN’s NFL analyst and senior writer
“Mara’s writing, with its vivid description and painstaking attention to detail, has the effect of a video camera and microphone following every step of every person in the high-stakes world of professional football - players, coaches, general managers, and agents. It’s fiction, but it has a ‘real’ feel. I often had the sense that I was hearing many of the conversations that go on between the sound bites. The depth of Mara’s knowledge of the game, on and off the field, comes through loud and clear on every page.”
- Vic Carucci, national editor of NFL.com and former president of the Professional Football Writers of America
“When you dive into 'The Cut', Wil takes you places inside the NFL that very few really can. His research and relationships around the league put you behind the closed doors of the coach’s office. This one’s a must-read for any serious fan.”
— Pat Kirwan, NFL.com senior analyst and co-host of 'Movin’ the Chains' on NFL Network/Sirius Satellite Radio
But the Giants refuse. They want Brookman to play through his last year, then they’ll talk about a new contract. Sturtz, however, doesn’t trust them. He wants the deal now—and if he doesn’t get it, he’s going to instruct T.J. to boycott the team’s upcoming training camp. Head coach Alan Gray doesn’t flinch at the threat—if T.J. doesn’t show, he says, they’ll simply bench him. Sturtz thinks it’s a bluff - the Giants have had problems with offensive production, and T.J. is their only bright spot. But Gray insists he’s serious.
No one is more stunned by this development than offensive coordinator Dale Greenwood. Having struggled in polite subordination under Gray’s megalomaniacal leadership, the talented Greenwood is concerned that he will now lose his most productive receiver. He suspects Gray’s true motivation is that he simply doesn’t want to spend the money on a tight end - Gray is a defensive-minded coach with little interest in the offensive side of the ball.
What Gray really wants is for everything to stay just the way it is. And to create the necessary leverage, he orders Greenwood to bring in three “camp bodies” - decoys, essentially - to compete for T.J.’s job. Greenwood has no choice but to comply, and he assembles a trio of unsigned players from the bottomless pool of league wannabes.
What no one anticipates, however, is that these three recruits have more drive and talent than anyone expected. Delighted, Gray believes Sturtz will soon be at his mercy. But neither Sturtz nor any the three hopefuls are willing to be a part of Alan Gray’s plan. Many variables are in play here, both on and off the field. And as any student of the game knows, there are more losers than winners on the last day of preseason - a day known as the Cut.
“One of the hardest parts about covering the NFL is getting inside the real nitty-gritty stories of today—holdouts, players reaching the end of the line, how family issues impact play on the field. Wil Mara has done a terrific and insightful job in 'The Cut' of taking you inside what really happens in the seamy side of modern pro football.”
- Peter King, Senior Writer, Sports Illustrated
“'The Cut' is like a summer raft trip that takes you deep inside the holdout of an NFL star, and shows you the waves its causes in the locker room and the front office. Wil Mara does a great job of going inside an NFL issue, giving the reader the true-life experience of what happens on a team. It’s fiction meeting reality in an entertaining fashion.”
- John Clayton, ESPN’s NFL analyst and senior writer
“Mara’s writing, with its vivid description and painstaking attention to detail, has the effect of a video camera and microphone following every step of every person in the high-stakes world of professional football - players, coaches, general managers, and agents. It’s fiction, but it has a ‘real’ feel. I often had the sense that I was hearing many of the conversations that go on between the sound bites. The depth of Mara’s knowledge of the game, on and off the field, comes through loud and clear on every page.”
- Vic Carucci, national editor of NFL.com and former president of the Professional Football Writers of America
“When you dive into 'The Cut', Wil takes you places inside the NFL that very few really can. His research and relationships around the league put you behind the closed doors of the coach’s office. This one’s a must-read for any serious fan.”
— Pat Kirwan, NFL.com senior analyst and co-host of 'Movin’ the Chains' on NFL Network/Sirius Satellite Radio
- GenresSports
304 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2007
2 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Wil Mara
262 books61 followersWil Mara has worked as an author for over 34 years and currently has more than 325 books in print. He has written both fiction and nonfiction, for children and adults. His books have won multiple awards, reached bestseller lists, earned excellent reviews, and been translated into more than a dozen languages. 2005’s Wave won the New Jersey Notable Book Award, and 2012’s The Gemini Virus remained on Amazon’s list of ‘Ten Bestseller Medical Thrillers’ for 14 consecutive weeks. The most recent novel in his disaster series, Fallout, was nominated for the Edgar Award for Novel of the Year. And his children’s nonfiction publications have won countless awards and terrific reviews in all the leading trade journals, including Booklist, School Library Journal, Kirkus, and others.
Much of his work for children has been nonfiction for the school-library market. He also ghostwrote five of the popular ‘Boxcar Children’ mysteries. And starting in 2019, Rosen Publishing released the first of his new ‘Twisted’ series, which has been described as “Twilight Zones for kids.” It became the most pre-ordered fiction series in the company’s history. The first ‘Twisted’ book, The Videomaniac, was released on January 1 and sold through its first printing in less than a month. The second, House of a Million Rooms, was released on March 1 and, just a few weeks later, was chosen as a Main Selection Title by the Junior Library Guild.
Wil was also an editor, administrator, and executive inside the industry for over 20 years, working for such houses as Scholastic, McGraw-Hill, Macmillan, and Prentice-Hall until turning to fulltime writing in 2005. He is an associate member of the NJASL and an executive member of the Board of Directors for the New Jersey Center for the Book, which is an affiliate of the US Library of Congress. He is also the vice president of the Literary Alliance of New Jersey, the host of the ‘Voice of American Libraries’ podcast, and the 2019 recipient of the Literary Lion of New Jersey Award, whose past winners include Gus Friedrich, Dean Emeritus of Rutgers University, and Joyce Carol Oates, National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist.
Wil is also an experienced speaker, presenter, and voice artist, having visited more than 300 schools and other institutions, and done the audio readings for many books, including his 2012 thriller The Gemini Virus. He continues to speak to audiences across the country (including via video) and do voice work as his writing schedule permits.
Much of his work for children has been nonfiction for the school-library market. He also ghostwrote five of the popular ‘Boxcar Children’ mysteries. And starting in 2019, Rosen Publishing released the first of his new ‘Twisted’ series, which has been described as “Twilight Zones for kids.” It became the most pre-ordered fiction series in the company’s history. The first ‘Twisted’ book, The Videomaniac, was released on January 1 and sold through its first printing in less than a month. The second, House of a Million Rooms, was released on March 1 and, just a few weeks later, was chosen as a Main Selection Title by the Junior Library Guild.
Wil was also an editor, administrator, and executive inside the industry for over 20 years, working for such houses as Scholastic, McGraw-Hill, Macmillan, and Prentice-Hall until turning to fulltime writing in 2005. He is an associate member of the NJASL and an executive member of the Board of Directors for the New Jersey Center for the Book, which is an affiliate of the US Library of Congress. He is also the vice president of the Literary Alliance of New Jersey, the host of the ‘Voice of American Libraries’ podcast, and the 2019 recipient of the Literary Lion of New Jersey Award, whose past winners include Gus Friedrich, Dean Emeritus of Rutgers University, and Joyce Carol Oates, National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prize finalist.
Wil is also an experienced speaker, presenter, and voice artist, having visited more than 300 schools and other institutions, and done the audio readings for many books, including his 2012 thriller The Gemini Virus. He continues to speak to audiences across the country (including via video) and do voice work as his writing schedule permits.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 23, 2014
'The Cut' is a tremendous novel of intrigue inside the NFL and particularly focussing on the machinations of the front office, although the coach is also very heavily involved in the drama portrayed in the novel.
The New York Giants' tight end T J Brookman, a sixth-round pick signed on a four-year contract, has become the best in his position in the league so his agent and himself feel that a new contract is in order for his final year. The Giants disagree and a hold-out follows with all the drama that goes with that action.
To teach TJ a lesson the Giants engage three other tight ends to supposedly compete for the position ... but in reality they knew that in the end TJ would continue for his final year so the three hopefuls, each with their own problems were there just to prove a point.
And so it goes until each of the newcomers looks good and puts in stella performances in the pre-season games. The Giants' owner is a business man and does not spend as much time with the team as he ought to but the rumblings in the camp permeate down to him and he suddenly takes more of an interest.
Meanwhile back at training camp a mole seems to be amongst the players and rumours filter down to the media whose reports upset the coach and the general manager. They take their own action within to try and find who the mole is but without success.
The three hopefuls eventually get wind of what is happening, set up a sting for one of the other tight ends, who is working with the coach to discredit his rivals, and eventually the unhealthy situation sorts itself out. But not before there are casualties within the organisation, all of which turn out for the best. As for the threesome, after one final magnificent game and the heartache that goes with it, they all get compensatory roles in and around the NFL.
This is a must-read book for all fans of the NFL, of which I am one of the biggest - a great read and difficult to put down as it feels as though you are in the locker room and involved in all the intrigue.
The New York Giants' tight end T J Brookman, a sixth-round pick signed on a four-year contract, has become the best in his position in the league so his agent and himself feel that a new contract is in order for his final year. The Giants disagree and a hold-out follows with all the drama that goes with that action.
To teach TJ a lesson the Giants engage three other tight ends to supposedly compete for the position ... but in reality they knew that in the end TJ would continue for his final year so the three hopefuls, each with their own problems were there just to prove a point.
And so it goes until each of the newcomers looks good and puts in stella performances in the pre-season games. The Giants' owner is a business man and does not spend as much time with the team as he ought to but the rumblings in the camp permeate down to him and he suddenly takes more of an interest.
Meanwhile back at training camp a mole seems to be amongst the players and rumours filter down to the media whose reports upset the coach and the general manager. They take their own action within to try and find who the mole is but without success.
The three hopefuls eventually get wind of what is happening, set up a sting for one of the other tight ends, who is working with the coach to discredit his rivals, and eventually the unhealthy situation sorts itself out. But not before there are casualties within the organisation, all of which turn out for the best. As for the threesome, after one final magnificent game and the heartache that goes with it, they all get compensatory roles in and around the NFL.
This is a must-read book for all fans of the NFL, of which I am one of the biggest - a great read and difficult to put down as it feels as though you are in the locker room and involved in all the intrigue.
March 9, 2025
The story is exciting & fast paced… follows a number of players at different stages of their careers. Their trials and tribulations; the volatility in their personal lives driven by the path of their careers. How they get treated more as a commodity than a person…
The real strength of this book is the behind the scenes look into the inner workings of the front offices of the NFL teams. The good side as well as the dark impulses that seem to exist at the nexus of money, ambition and lust known as The National Football League !
Overall Decent book
Probably more enjoyable for NFL fans….
The real strength of this book is the behind the scenes look into the inner workings of the front offices of the NFL teams. The good side as well as the dark impulses that seem to exist at the nexus of money, ambition and lust known as The National Football League !
Overall Decent book
Probably more enjoyable for NFL fans….
April 11, 2016
The book, The Cut, by Wil Mara is about a second year player in the NFL, T.J. Brookman, who statistically is the best at his position. With one year left in his rookie contract, his agent wants him to be paid higher because of his top notch performance. When they requested this to the Giants, the team Brookman plays for, the head manager Alan Gray turned them down. Gray wants Brookman to play his last season on his contract and then renegotiate the contract. Barry Sturtz, Brookman's agent, threatens to boycott the preseason training camp. By doing this, Alan Gray threatens to bench Brookman for the entire season. To continue his plan, he signs three different players that would compete for his spot on the team roster. Corey Reese, a veteran player who slowed down due to injuries in his knee. Diamon Foster, a free agent who wasn't drafted in the NFL draft. Jermaine Hamilton, another veteran player who is considered too old to and isn't as good of a player as he was. They were all being used as part of Gray's plan to get Brookman to play. Surprisingly, those players showed passion for the game and played to their maximum potential which adds to the awesome story line this book has. This book starts off slow by introducing the situation and characters, but by page 50, you will be into the fun, exciting plot. Wil Mara does a great job showing the perspectives of different players and coaches. He also shows how exciting and dramatic everything is during the off season. I recommend this book to any sport fan who understand football even just a little bit.
February 5, 2016
So I read a book called The Cut by Wil Mara and I loved it. After I picked it up and looked at the title I knew that I wouldn’t be able to put it down and I was right.I will be honest though it was a little slow in the beginning. If you want a football book that all about action and adventure then this book isn’t for you. This book is more about the behind the scenes of the NFL. The parts we the fans aren’t allowed to see the negotiations and inside the training camps. We get to see the talks between the coaches and players. The coaches and the owner(s) of the team of the team. We also see the negotiations between the agents and the coaches/GMs. So the actual book is about a man called T.J. Brookman and the Tight End position. Now T.J. had been a very good Tight end for the Now York Giants and he thought he deserved a better contract. Since he was drafted in the 3rd round and was only making 300,000 dollars a year but he was playing better than people who were paid 15 million. Then that’s when the Giants decline that and invite 3 new players to replace him. So that is kind of the beginning of the book I obviously won’t give you the full thing because you need to read it. It ends up being a very good book with some twists and turns in the middle and a surprise ending. So I would definitely suggest this book to anyone who likes football or the NFL in general but again not for someone who likes action.
January 13, 2016
The book I read was called “The Cut.” This book was about a Tight end that wanted more money and argued for it. Everyone tried helping him but they wouldn’t change their minds. It was a huge problem for the team.
First thing that I like about the book was the arguments. They were super intense and almost on the edge of rioting or strike. All because the best tight end in the league wanted more than what he was originally getting paid. Everyone on the team thought he should, all but the people that paid them. The whole nation thought he should’ve, all the fans and non-fans. It was complete chaos.
What I didn’t like was how everyone approached it. They were about to riot against the head. No one else should’ve been involved besides the head, the player, and the player’s manager, Not the whole nation of the team. It should’ve just been those people. They should’ve made a calmer approach to the situation and worked it out themselves.
All and all, I liked almost everything about this book. In my opinion, I would recommend this book for you. This was a good read for me and It kept me entertained.
First thing that I like about the book was the arguments. They were super intense and almost on the edge of rioting or strike. All because the best tight end in the league wanted more than what he was originally getting paid. Everyone on the team thought he should, all but the people that paid them. The whole nation thought he should’ve, all the fans and non-fans. It was complete chaos.
What I didn’t like was how everyone approached it. They were about to riot against the head. No one else should’ve been involved besides the head, the player, and the player’s manager, Not the whole nation of the team. It should’ve just been those people. They should’ve made a calmer approach to the situation and worked it out themselves.
All and all, I liked almost everything about this book. In my opinion, I would recommend this book for you. This was a good read for me and It kept me entertained.
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February 28, 2008This is an excellent book for my sports enthusiasts.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews