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New York Giants’ Coordinators: New and Old Step Into Spotlight
Published: May 22, 2009
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2. Write a profile on your team’s coaching staff. Single out key members in the team’s play calling, decision making, etc. How did the key members rise to that position?
A glance at the Giants coaching staff reveals a group that reflects the composition of the Giants roster in the Eli Manning era: continuity in many spots combined with some new faces brought in to complement head coach Tom Coughlin.
Seven coaches (Kevin Gilbride-offensive coordinator, Pat Flaherty-offensive line, Jerald Ingram-running backs, Mike Pope-tight ends, Mike Sullivan-wide receivers, David Merritt-secondary/safeties, and Mike Waufle-defensive line) have been with the Giants for the duration of Coughlin’s regime (2004-Present).
Recently promoted defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan has been on board since 2005, and Peter Giunta (secondary/cornerbacks) since 2006.
In the NFL, where coaching turnover amongst assistants as well as head coaches is quite frequent, this coaching staff continuity has been an underlooked aspect to the Giants current franchise record streak of four consecutive playoff appearances.
Like many other NFL coaches and the man who first brought him to the Giants for his first tour of duty (wide receivers coach 1988-1990) with the Giants, Bill Parcells, Coughlin has long preferred that assistant coaches are restricted from talking to the media as much as possible (a trend that commissioner Roger Goodell has fought vigorously in his brief tenure).
While this makes any profile of the Giants coaching staff somewhat of a mystery, some Giants assistants have made names for themselves in recent years.
With former defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo (2007-2008) becoming the first member of the Giant staff during the Coughlin era to leave for a head coaching position with the St. Louis Rams, we look at the Giants current coordinators, holdover Kevin Gilbride on offense, and Spagnuolo’s replacement, Bill Sheridan.
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR-Kevin Gilbride
Going back to the days immediately following Tom Coughlin’s hiring in 2004, one of the more peculiar decisions made by Coughlin involved Gilbride and previous offensive coordinator John Hufnagel.
As of 2004, Gilbride had previously served as an offensive coordinator with four NFL teams (Oilers ’90-’93, Jaguars ’95-’96, Steelers ’99-’00, and Bills ’02-’03), and a two-year stint as head coach of the Chargers from ’97-’98.
In San Diego, Gilbride was done in by one of the toughest tasks ever assigned to any NFL head coach: trying to win with Ryan Leaf as his starting quarterback.
Hufnagel on the other hand, had never been a coordinator in the NFL, and had far less experience coaching in the NFL, as he had spent a great deal of his career coaching in the Canadian and Arena leagues.
Hufnagel’s NFL coaching experience at this point consisted of four separate tours of duty over a five-year span as quarterbacks coach in Cleveland, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, and New England.
To the surprise of many, Coughlin overlooked Gilbride’s track record as a coordinator, Hufnagel’s as a quarterbacks coach, and proceeded to name Gilbride quarterbacks coach and Hufnagel offensive coordinator.
For the first two and a half seasons of Coughlin’s regime, this peculiar decision drew little fanfare. After a disappointing 6-10 season season in 2004, the Giants and quarterback Eli Manning made great strides in ’05, winning 11 games and the N.F.C. East title.
Even after a disappointing 23-0 home loss to the Carolina Panthers, the Giants and their offense both appeared to be on the rise and on track to becoming perennial championship contenders.
John Hufnagel and his job performance were rarely so much as casually bantered about during his first two years in New York. But when the Giants offense hit a rough patch late in the controversy-laden 2006 season, Hufnagel quickly became one of the scapegoats for a talented offense’s underachieving ways
Hufnagel’s play-calling was often drawn into question during the second-half of the ’06 season, especially following a week 12 loss in Tennessee that saw the Giants lose a 21-0 fourth quarter lead in a 24-21 loss to the Titans.
With the collapse aided by Hufnagel carelessly abandoning the ground game with a three touchdown lead, the heat on Hufnagel was turned up, and things reached a boiling point following a week 16, 30-7 home loss to New Orleans in which the Giants failed to cross mid-field the entire game.
Desperate to salvage the season with a Week 17 win in Washington, Coughlin relieved Hufnagel of his duties.
It was announced that Gilbride would call the plays, and while he wasn’t officially given the title of coordinator until the season concluded, for all intents and purposes, the offense has been in Gilbride’s hands since the ’06 season finale, a 34-28 playoff berth clinching victory in Washington.
Two years later, this singular decision has benefitted the three involved parties better than anyone could have imagined. Tom Coughlin was retained as Giants coach and led the team to the world championship a year later and Gilbride finally won his first championship in the 17th year and sixth stop of his NFL coaching odyssey.
And what about the forgotten John Hufnagel? He left the Giants, missed out on the incredible championship season, and banished off to western Canada…Where he coached the Calgary Stampeders to the CFL’s Grey Cup championship in his first season as head coach. To top it off, he was awarded the Annis Stukus trophy as the CFL. Coach of the Year.
In a coaching profession filled with firings, relocated families, and lots of coaches leaving the business with unfulfilled dreams, this turn of events was truly remarkable.
As 2009 approaches, Gilbride looks to help the Giant offense and it’s receiving corp in particular remake itself following Plaxico Burress’ season ending suspension in 2008, and the team’s subsequent decision to release him this past March.
While Gilbride did catch some heat from Giant fans and writers alike for his play-calling in the 23-11 playoff loss to Philadelphia, the fact remains that in Gilbride’s two full seasons as coordinator, the offense has been far more consistent overall than in the years previous to his promotion.
Although he has not and most likely will not receive the recognition and star status of his former defensive counterpart in Spagnuolo, Gilbride has done a credible job as O.C. and the Giants are fortunate to have him.
In the 2007 championship season, Gilbride was forced to deal with the inconsistency of his star quarterback, a revolving door of running backs as Derrick Ward was lost for the year and Brandon Jacobs missed time, the season-ending injury of tight end Jeremy Shockey, and receiver Steve Smith missing the vast majority of the regular season.
While it’s true that Manning worked the kinks out of his game and talented reserves like Ahmad Bradshaw and Kevin Boss stepped up their games, Gilbride and the rest of the offensive staff deserved at least part of the credit for the many seamless transitions made by reserves into the starting lineup.
With the Giants receiving corp needing a makeover, Spagnuolo gone, and the propensity of fans to latch on to popular assistants and blame others for a team’s failings, Gilbride’s days as an overlooked and overshadowed assistant coach could be over, with increases in praise and criticism both possibilities.
The Giants’ ability in 2009 to put up points against top teams will be highly scrutinized early and often. Like many companies in today’s volatile market, Kevin Gilbride’s stock will be one to watch come September.
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR-Bill Sheridan
With Spagnuolo gone to St. Louis, the Giants promoted from within, naming linebackers coach Bill Sheridan as defensive coordinator. Secondary/Cornerbacks coach Peter Giunta, the only member of the Giants defensive staff who previously served as a NFL coordinator (St. Louis, 1998-2000) was also considered, but it was Sheridan who got the nod.
As he steps into one of the NFL’s most storied assistant coaching posts, Sheridan is an unknown quantity as a coordinator. The same cannot be said of many of his predecessors.
Over the past half century, few positions have resembled a stepping stone the way Giants D.C. has. Starting in the 50’s with Tom Landry right through Spagnuolo’s two-year tenure, this position has often been filled with coaches on their way to bigger and better things.
Along with Landry and Spagnuolo, past Giant defensive coordinators who have eventually became head coaches either with the Giants or elsewhere include the two Bills, Parcells (1979, 1981-1982) and Belichick (1985-1990), Marty Schottenheimer (1977), Mike Nolan (1993-1996), and John Fox (1997-2001).
Looking ahead to Sheridan’s tenure as coordinator, one things is certain: Sheridan has plenty of talent to work with in his first year piloting the defense.
As for the journey he took from small-college player to NFL coordinator, it is clear that Sheridan’s trek was an old-fashioned one, paved slowly and surely over the past three decades.
While the NFL has began to trend towards hiring younger head coaches over the past decade like Jon Gruden, Eric Mangini, Raheem Morris, and Josh McDaniels (34, 35, 32, 33 respectively when first hired as head coach), Sheridan is proof that the coaching lifer who slowly progresses into a prominent position still exists.
Once his playing days at Grand Valley State College (since changed to University) concluded following the 1980 season, Sheridan jumped right into the coaching profession.
Over the course of the next 28 years, Sheridan held 11 different positions with a combination of one high school, six different colleges, and as Giants linebackers coach in the pros.
For geography lovers and biography lovers alike, Sheridan coached at Shrine Catholic High School in Royal Oak, Michigan from 1981-1984, and after stepping up to the college ranks in 1985, at Michigan, Maine, Cincinnati, Army, Michigan State, and Notre Dame before returning to Michigan in 2002, where he stayed through 2004 before coming to the Giants in ’05.
As for a statistic not seen in the sports section but often discussed inside the coaching profession, Sheridan moved from one city to another on eight separate occasions.
Outside of a six-year stint at Army from 1992-1997 where he served as both linebackers coach and defensive backs coach, Sheridan never stayed at any spot longer than three years, which he did on three occasions, at Cincinnati (1989-1991), Michigan State (1998-2000), and during his second stint at Michigan (2002-2004).
After 28 years as a position coach, Sheridan’s first off-season as a coordinator has not surprisingly seen him pledge to keep the majority of Steve Spagnuolo’s system in place.
In an interview with giants.com, Sheridan acknowledged that a system that he described as “very sound, and proven” will remain intact and that “there won’t be a lot of changes.”
With a system spoken highly of by it’s players intact and a talented and deep defense, the pressure is on Sheridan to maintain the Giants strong pass rush and overall defense.
While it’s clear that with a defensive line that goes eight deep with talented players, captain and emotional leader Antonio Pierce leading the linebacking corps and a solid secondary returning, the Giant defense will be somewhat strong.
However, as Sheridan may soon find out, the 2009 Giants defense is a unit that has the potential to be truly great, and a “strong” showing might not be acceptable to Giants fans hungry for another Super Bowl victory.
Even in his first year as coordinator, Sheridan’s defense will be accepted to perform at high level early starting in September right through January’s playoffs and he will be under a microscope right away.
Will Sheridan become another hero amongst Giants fans like previous coordinators Belichick and Spagnuoulo? While only time will answer that question, you can be sure that having waited 28 years for this opportunity, Sheridan is eager to try and work his way into the rarefied air of that conversation.
