Pat Shurmur has only had two years as the head coach of the New York Giants, but it has been a tumultuous tenure. A litany of debacles by Shurmur, that have aided in Giants losses, have Giants fans taking to the streets with pitchforks and torches, demanding his firing.
Full disclosure, I felt that Pat Shurmur was the right choice for the New York Giants head coaching position at the time of his hiring. As the offensive coordinator, he helped lead the Minnesota Vikings to within one game of a Super Bowl, despite having a career backup quarterback, Case Keenum as his starter. Reports out of Minnesota were that Shurmur was a bright offensive mind, with an uncanny ability to develop young quarterback talent.
I figured that with Eli Manning entering the twilight of his career, Shurmur would be an excellent candidate to lead the Giants and their quarterback of the future. However, the outcome has been extremely disappointing, as the team has had a plethora of culture issues in the locker room, leading to many of their veteran players being jettisoned out of New York in an attempt to change the culture. In addition, there have been glaring mistakes in regards to play calling and game management that have cast Shurmur in a bad light.
I feel that if Shurmur were to relinquish his offensive play calling duties to offensive coordinator Mike Shula, in an effort to focus solely on game management, he may be able to secure his job moving forward and be an adequate coach. However, it does not appear that Shurmur is willing to give up his role as offensive play caller, which may end in his demise by the end of the season. If that were to occur, here are my top five options as coaches to replace him as the next head coach of the New York Giants: