Who will Brian Daboll bring to the New York Giants as part of his coaching staff, could some of the Buffalo Bills’ assistants be joining him?
The New York Giants have wrapped up their GM and Head Coaching search.
John Mara and Steve Tisch decided to pay respects to their Western New York NFL counterparts and task general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll as the new duo to help fix the Giants‘ woes.
Schoen conducted his HC search quickly.
Daboll appeared to be his #1 guy all along and the New York Giants look to have some synergy between their GM and Head Coach, something that has been desperately lacking for over a half-decade in East Rutherford now.
Daboll swore to go right to work in his opening statements as the Giants’ new voice and leader amongst the coaching staff. It will be up to Daboll to find the right leaders and people in place to coach the New York Giants back to where they need to get to in order to be successful and fix their recent-season struggles.
Daboll’s first big task as Head Coach of the NY Giants will be putting together a coaching staff that can help put the players in the best position to win football games.
Joe Judge had an interesting staff in his two years in New York and it will be very intriguing to see what holdovers (if any) return to the New York Giants in any capacity next season.
Here is a look at Brian Daboll’s and the New York Giants’ possible coaching staff and coordinators for 2022.
Coaching Candidate #1: Ken Dorsey, Bills’ QB Coach/Passing Game Coordinator
Ken Dorsey has already been the No. 1 topic and name to come up in coaching circles that Daboll wants to bring to NY.
Reports have been flying all over that Schoen and Daboll want to bring in another one of Buffalo’s top offensive masterminds to help fix what has become a broken New York Giants’ offense.
If Daboll convinces Dorsey to leave Buffalo for New York, it could be a huge boon for Daniel Jones specifically. The former University of Miami QB has done a lot in Buffalo for their passing game improvements including helping Josh Allen unlock and develop his overall game.
Dorsey has had a direct hand in the steady improvement of both Josh Allen and Cam Newton in his NFL coaching career. If Daniel Jones can stay healthy, Dorsey may be able to unlock further potential for Jones as a duel threat option in this offense and further improve the points and yards totals across the board in 2022.
Coaching Candidate #2: Don ‘Wink’ Martindale, *Ex* Ravens Defensive Coordinator
Don Martindale could be another intriguing, exciting addition to Brian Daboll’s coaching staff if Daboll gets his way.
It appears that Daboll may chase Coach Wink as his No. 1 option to lead his defense with the NY Giants. Martindale was recently let go by the Ravens after running their defense the last four seasons. Coach Wink has been with the Ravens since 2012, helping them win a Super Bowl his 1st season with the team. He previously worked with the Broncos and Raiders beforehand as a Linebackers’ coach and also Defensive Coordinator.
In four years under Martindale’s watch, the Ravens defense has been ranked #2 two times and #3 once in total points allowed on the season. They’ve also been top-10 in yards allowed in the three same seasons under Martindale’s guidance.
The New York Giants could only hope to replicate any kind of success like this defensively. It’s been a while since the team has fielded a strong or dominant defensive unit.
Patrick Grahm has to be mentioned here as he is a legit, viable, and well-qualified candidate. He has worked with Daboll in the past in New England so there is a connection here but he has interviewed in numerous places including with the Vikings for their Head Coach gig this weekend. It seems more unlikely than not that Graham returns at this point unless things change.
Coaching Candidate #3: Chase Blackburn, ex-Panthers Special Teams Coordinator
Here’s an interesting name to throw out.
Many New York Giants fans are still familiar with Chase Blackburn.
The one-time eight-year Giants’ player and Super Bowl hero has been in Carolina with the Panthers running their special teams operations for the past four seasons.
Blackburn was a two-time Super Bowl champ with the Giants and was a longtime core special teams player. Blackburn has that blue-collar attitude and mindset and his player DNA easily allows him to relate to and understand the players he’s working with. Blackburn’s special teams’ groups have been a solid group for the better part of four years under his tutelage.
Although Blackburn and Daboll have no connections to one another, Blackburn was recently let go by Matt Rhule amidst a vastly disappointing season for the Panthers and he is looking for a fresh start in his NFL coaching career. Blackburn returning to NY for the 3rd time with the Giants would be a feel-good story, while also yielding excitement over what he can get the most out of his team. The NY Giants were head coached by a former Special Teams Coordinator for the past 2 years. Despite this, they lacked many explosive plays in the return game and didn’t block any kicks or punts or create game-altering moments with their 3rd unit.
It remains to be seen who Daboll may want to be as his Special Teams Coordiantor. He would be wise to seriously look at Chase Blackburn and see if his experience in New York can bring back the glory days of his successes.