Fan Article of the Week: Who Will the New York Giants Look to Hire as Their Next Head Coach?

On Monday December 4th, the New York Giants fired Head Coach, Ben McAdoo, after just 28 games. He served as their Offensive Coordinator during the 2014 and 2015 seasons before he was promoted to Head Coach after the Giants chose to part ways with two-time Super Bowl Champion, Tom Coughlin. McAdoo’s first season could not have gone much better, as he led the Giants to an 11-5 record and their first playoff berth since 2011. However, after a disastrous 2-10 record through 12 games this year, New York Giants’ president, John Mara, had seen enough. Upon McAdoo’s departure, Mara chose to promote Defensive Coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo to Interim Head Coach. This likely will not be the end of the Giants’ search for a new Head Coach, but just who exactly will they look to hire? Here are some of the top candidates as of today:

1. Mike Smith: Smith is the top candidate as of right now because he was heavily connected to the job back in 2016. Many people believe that if the Giants had not chose to promote McAdoo, Smith would have been named head coach. He is currently serving as the defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but has many years of head coaching experience under his belt. Smith coached the Atlanta Falcons from 2008-2014, compiling a 66-44 record to go along with four playoff appearances in seven years.
2. Josh McDaniels: It seems like every offseason, McDaniels’ name comes up with almost every head coaching vacancy. Yes, he has Tom Brady at quarterback, which helps A LOT, but he is still considered by many as one of the most exciting offensive minds in the NFL today. McDaniels did briefly serve as the head coach of the Denver Broncos during the 2009 and 2010 seasons, but only managed an 11-17 record. At just the age of 41 and serving as the OC of a perennial Super Bowl favorite, it may be tough to lure him back into a head coaching job at this time.
3. David Shaw: Shaw may not be as well known as the other candidates listed, but nonetheless, his resume is still very impressive. He is currently serving as the Head Coach of Stanford, where he has been leading their team since Jim Harbaugh left for the NFL back in 2011. Since then, Stanford is 73-20 and has consistently been one of the best teams in the PAC-12. Shaw also has plenty of NFL experience, as he served as an Assistant Coach for the Ravens, Raiders, and Chargers from 1997-2005. Every year, he receives a good amount of interest from NFL teams looking to hire a coach, but nothing has persuaded him to leave his gig at Stanford. Would the Giants’ job be enough?

Wild Card Candidate – Nick Saban: Now I know what you are thinking, “Why would Saban leave the empire he has built down in Tuscaloosa?” Well, he probably won’t, but that hasn’t stopped teams from checking on his availability every now and then. Not only that, but Saban WAS linked to the head coaching job back in 2016 and, apparently, showed some sort of genuine interest in it. However, after discussing the job with his family, he pulled his name from consideration. Could this be the year Saban chooses to return to the big leagues?

Written by Ryan Scimone