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The New York Giants have named former New England Patriots assistant coach Joe Judge as their 21st coach in franchise history. Judge was in charge of special teams in New […]
The New York Giants have named former New England Patriots assistant coach Joe Judge as their 21st coach in franchise history. Judge was in charge of special teams in New England while also serving as wide receivers coach.
From 1931 to 2015, only one Giants coach lasted 32 games or less (Ray Handley coached 32 games for New York from 1991 to 1992.) Since Tom Coughlin’s departure from New York in 2015, neither of his successors has lasted more than two seasons.
Ben McAdoo coached 28 games for the Giants, with a 13-15 record and an 0-1 record in the playoffs. McAdoo didn’t make it to the end of his second season, replaced for the final four games by interim head coach Steve Spagnuolo.
Pat Shurmur went 5-11 in 2018 and 4-12 in 2019 before being relieved of his coaching duties as well. While the Giants have dealt with injuries, roster turnover, and some locker room turmoil over the past three seasons, they still could have won more games, and coaching was definitely part of the problem.
Joe Judge takes over a team with promise but in need of direction and identity. With Judge’s background in New England, his attention to detail, and his connection to Bill Belichick, the first-time head coach is ready to establish a new culture in New York.
At Judge’s disposal on offense will be Daniel Jones and Saquon Barkley. Jones had an up and down rookie season, but showed promise and established himself as an above replacement level quarterback. Barkley, one of the most electrifying talents in the game, was often kept in check. He rushed for just 1 yard against the New York Jets in MetLife Stadium, and even when he has higher rushing yardage, it’s usually thanks to one or two huge runs.
Both Jones and Barkley have the talent, but need to find consistency to keep the Giants offense moving and scoring. This will be the first thing Judge has to figure out in order to make the Giants a good football team again.
New York’s defense has issues too, but improved in the second half of the 2019 season. If Jones and Barkley can hold on to the ball longer by sustaining drives, there will also be less pressure on the defense.
A fresh 38 years old (Judge’s birthday was on December 31,) Judge is a much younger coach than the Giants are used to hiring. I don’t think David Gettleman and the Mara’s made it necessary qualification to have a younger coach this time around, but the change is certainly welcomed. The Giants are an old school franchise that likes to do things their way. This has worked for them in the past, with two Super Bowl wins under Tom Coughlin in 2007 and 2011. But after three straight losing seasons, a culture shake-up couldn’t hurt.
Next up for the Giants is hiring a new offensive coordinator to run Judge’s offense. In the headlines is a familiar name from the NFC East: now former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett.
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