Now that John Harbaugh is the head coach of the New York Giants, I don't even think we have time to go over all of the changes he's made since taking over. But perhaps one of the biggest changes we have seen from Harbs his been his willingness to re-affirm the importance of special teams in 2026.
Before he became the head coach of the Ravens, the 63-year-old spent eight years as the special teams coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles--so if there's anyone who knows the way special teams can alter the momentum in a game, it's the man who once hung his hat on that area of the game.
The Giants have basically overhauled their special teams core--and considering their special teams was among the worst in the NFL last season, that was long overdue. And the changes he has made go well beyond just bringing Chris Horton along with him to be the new special teams coordinator.
The Giants are finally prioritizing special teams under John Harbaugh
And it seems there's a method to the madness. Giants.com writer Dan Salomone got a 1-on-1 interview with the Super Bowl-winning coach, where he was able to ask about the importance of special teams and all of the sweeping changes we've seen on that side of the football this offseason.
"I never met a good football player that didn't want to play special teams, that didn't have fun doing it because it's the epitome of football," Harbaugh said. "Blocking, tackling, running, hitting, that's what special teams is. So all the great players, the [Brian] Dawkinses, the Ed Reeds, those guys all wanted to play special teams. I see that same thing in our guys here."
It's interesting, because a lot of the special teamers in New York aren't guys who carried over from the Daboll regime. Most of these guys were brought in by Harbaugh himself, because he wants players willing to play special teams and do the dirty work--because that's how you get ahead in this league. And he brought up two Hall of Fame safeties he coached in Brian Dawkins and Ed Reed as evidence.
Big Blue signed longtime Ravens punter Jordan Stout, they'll soon have a new kicker in undrafted rookie Dominic Zvada, and the return game should improve too. Deonte Banks looked good as the primary return man down the stretch, but Braxton Berrios may push him for that job in training camp.
It's almost Tom Coughlin-esque in a sense, because the G-Men are turning back the clock to the days where their specials were uber-consistent. And for these players who are on the roster bubble, Harbaugh makes an interesting point since special teams is an optimal way to stand out in camp.
John Harbaugh doesn't believe in the notion that players atop the depth chart are too good for special teams, and buy-in on specials will be crucial to the Giants' culture shift and eventual return to the playoffs.
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