Giants QB Lauded for 'Making It Right' After Pizzeria's Complaint

Tommy DeVito has become somewhat of a sensation after making his NFL debut in October, as has his stylish agent Sean Stellato, but the New York Giants quarterback was faced with some negative coverage this week involving a pizzeria in New Jersey. ESPN reports that the 25-year-old had been set to make an appearance Tuesday at Coniglio's Old Fashioned in Morristown, but on Sunday, a social media post from the pizzeria announced that the event was canceled. The venue noted on Instagram that, after DeVito helped his team beat the Packers the previous week, "we received word from his agent that his appearance fee would be doubling," from $10,000 to $20,000.

"We are a small family run business & decided $20,000 was a bit steep for 2 hours," the pizzeria wrote. Later that evening, Stellato told sports reporter Darren Rovell that "it's a shame that the restaurant promoted that they would have Tommy when we didn't have a signed contract." Stellato added: "We didn't raise the price because nothing was ever agreed to." Coniglio's owner Nino Coniglio then jumped into the fray, telling Rovell: "We agreed in principle to terms—2 hours, 250 autographs and $10,000," noting that after that agreement, Stellato couldn't be reached—until Monday, when Stellato then informed Coniglio's the price would be $20,000 for his client to show.

Coniglio offered a text to Rovell from Stellato as proof of their exchange. Whatever the cause of the apparent miscommunication, DeVito made a surprise appearance anyway on Tuesday at Coniglio's, without charge, where he shared a slice with Coniglio, helped serve sodas from the soda pump, and even greeted some of his youngest fans. "Thanks for stopping by & making it right @tommydevito," the pizzeria posted on Instagram. "In the end, DeVito got some face time with fans and what looks like a tasty lunch with his reputation intact," notes Yahoo Sports writer Jason Owens. "And Coniglio got a lot more promotion than he bargained for at a steep discount. Everybody appears to have come out on top." (More New York Giants stories.)