Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey didn’t attend the parade and rally for the team on Tuesday. 

It’s not really surprising.  Instead of being on the sidelines with his team during Super Bowl XLII, Shockey was double-fisting drinks in a luxury suite.  And he has been not around at all for much of the team’s improbable run to the NFL title.

We realize that a guy who suffers a season-ending injury immediately acquires plenty of emotional baggage, especially if his team suddenly thrives in his absence.  But Shockey’s posture smacks of selfishness, and the fact that the Giants galvanized as a team without him will make it harder for him to re-integrate into it, especially if he spends most of the offseason working out in Miami, as usual.

And if Shockey senses that the team is looking to move on, don’t be surprised if he starts working the back channels for a trade. 

Receiver Plaxico Burress also missed the Tuesday parade due to the knee injury that almost kept him out of Super Bowl XLII.  But Burress caught up with the team for the rally at the Meadowlands.