N.Y. Giants: New GM Dave Gettleman Vows To Kick Ass

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

Gett This House In Order

New York Giants: David Gettleman Named New General Manager ... And I Couldn't Be More Happy.

My genesis as a Giants fan occurred while Andy Robustelli (1974-1978) still served as general manager.  But I do not remember much, if anything, about him.

I vividly recall, however, the day the Giants hired George Young, and his 18-year tenure as general manager.

From 1994 through 1997, Ernie Accorsi served as assistant GM under George Young.  Upon his retirement after the 1997 season, Young appointed Ernie Accorsi to succeed him as next general manager of the Giants.

Jerry Reese likewise began working for the Giants in 1994 as a college scout.  In 1997, he was elevated to pro scout by George Young.  In 2004, Accorsi made him director of player personnel.  Upon his own retirement after the 2006 season, Ernie Accorsi named Jerry Reese general manager.

It was also Ernie Accorsi who originally brought David Gettleman into the New York Giants fold as a scout back in 1998.  He was elevated the following year and served as pro personnel director through the 2011 season.  In 2012, Jerry Reese promoted him to senior pro personnel analyst.

When the Carolina Panthers were in search of a new general manager, they brought in Ernie Accorsi as a consultant, whom recommended Dave Gettleman.  Gettleman in turn served from 2013 through 2016 as general manager of the Panthers, posting a 40-23 regular season record over his four years.  The Panthers made three straight playoff appearances under his stewardship, and after posting a 15-1 record in 2015 opposed the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl Fifty.

After co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch moved to release Jerry Reese and former head coach Ben McAdoo, they similarly consulted Ernie Accorci, who once again recommended Dave Gettleman (whom in 2016 experienced a falling out with Panthers managing owner Jerry Richardson).

His interview effectively ended with haste the Giants search for Jerry Reese's replacement.  And now David Gettleman becomes the fourth lineal general manager of the New York Giants during my lifetime.

Simply put, I love the move!

This is not just another typically safe in-house selection.  Dave Gettleman's resume speaks for itself. He has been a part of four different Super Bowl contending organizations.  He has scouted or served as general manager for two different AFC champions, and two different NFC champions.  All told, he's been associated with nine Super Bowl appearances:

• Buffalo - 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993.
• Denver - 1997.
• NYG - 2000, 2007, 2011.
• Carolina - 2015.

Gettleman began his NFL career scouting for the Buffalo Bills in 1986, and through the 1993 season.  For those of you still too young at the time, or not yet born, those Bills were frighteningly stacked with Hall of Fame and Pro Bowl caliber talent, whom together won four consecutive AFC championships.

From 1994 through 1997, Gettleman then served as a scout for the Denver Broncos.  Denver went 7-9 during his first season associated with the organization, then followed with an 8-8 record during his second.  The Broncos elevated to 13-3 in 1996, then posted a 14-2 record in 1997 en route to winning Super Bowl XXXII.

Then began his first stint in East Rutherford.  He was on staff during the Giants Super Bowl run of 2000, and for both their 2007 and 2011 championship seasons.

Said another way, the man understands winning.  Moreover, he understands New York Giants football.

Dave Gettleman Press Conference - NYG.com

Jerry Reese was widely criticized for his failure to effectively rebuild the offensive line, and poor drafting overall.  And while it's true that not one player from the 2011 and 2012 drafts presently play for the Giants, to be fair, Gettlemen and Marc Ross, were still a part of that process.

Since 2013, the Reese and Ross connection have arguably hit on a few players (some more debatable than others): Justin Pugh, Odell Beckham Jr., Weston Richburg, Landon Collins, Sterling Shepard, B.J. Goodson, and most recent addition, Evan Engram.

A few of their more notable busts are proving to be Eli Apple, Ereck Flowers, and newly departed Bobby Hart.

Point being, Jerry Reese, Marc Ross, the entire scouting department, and extended staff, indeed left much to be desired.

And so, here we are.

NY Giants Draft History - Football Reference

Prior to interviewing Dave Gettleman, the Giants previously extended their very first interview opportunity to Marc Ross.  On board since 2007, Ross spent his first six years with the organization serving as their director of college scouting, and for the last five years has served as the Giants vice president of player evaluation.

The New York Daily News suspects his interview did not go very well, because on Saturday David Gettleman fired Marc Ross.

At the very least, one should immediately ponder the future of Ken Sternfeld (director of pro personnel) as well.

David Gettleman does not operate in grey zones.  His decisions, rather, gleam with conviction.

He refuses to pay one dollar beyond what he thinks is their fair market value, and certainly won't pay for past performance late in careers.  In fact, he'd rather cut a player too early than too late, and is quick to eliminate malcontents from his locker room.  Look no further than his treatment of former Panthers favorites Steve Smith, DeAngelo Williams, Jon Beason, and Josh Norman.

Speaking of which ... I hope Odell Beckham Jr. is paying attention.  Or, maybe he should call right tackle Bobby Hart.  It was reported during Sunday's Giants/Redskins telecast on FOX, that Bobby Hart allegedly refused to play in Sunday's meaningless game.  Dave Gettleman in turn waived him.

During his introductory press conference, Gettleman listed among his top his priorities: rebuilding the offensive line; reestablishing the running game; and rebuilding the defensive line.  If you look at his team building in Carolina, he consistently maintained a strong presence at linebacker as well.

Is Dave Gettleman set on bringing back the good old days of Smash Mouth?

That remains to be seen.

But he did say rather matter of fact, his goal is to kick ass.

N.Y. Giants: A Big Blue Crucible Built For Two

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

When GIANTS ruled the world...!

New York Football Giants: Gone are Scapegoat One and Scapegoat Two. Will the axe fall next on Who One or Who Two?

It should read like Dr. Seuss...!  Because somewhere between the Cat in the Hat and the Isle of Dr. Moreau lies my opening statement with regards to the upcoming season.

I watched pre-season game #1; three words ~ What a Mess!

Otherwise I have nothing constructive to offer regarding the game.  

In fact, the Football Giants should count their blessings,

 the Baseball Mets are presently doing well and have me distracted.

But I Got Your Pre-Season Right Here!

General manager Jerry Reese's window for winning a third Vince Lombardi trophy with Eli Manning is closing fast.  That would also suggest the window remains open.

Right?

In truth, all Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin can do is look at each other dismayed over what Jerry Reese has done to the House of Mara.

• Remember how proud Wellington was when his much maligned Giants won the 2000 NFC Championship Game on a field of green painted mud?  There's always that chance, which is exactly why I exhort the Giants to always DO IT FOR THE DUKE!

Unfortunately, the Giants have Big Blue issues my friends.  So, be afraid.  Be very afraid.

THIRD and LONG: If at first, second, or third you do not succeed, try, try and try again, and again, and again...

I'm being kind when declaring the New York Giants are at a crossroad.  According to Albert Einstein's definition, Big Blue is a team bordering on insanity for repeatedly facing the same fork in the road over the last 3 seasons, and veering toward the wayward path each time.

Subsequent to 2011, a series of unremarkable drafts and pedestrian free agent signings failed to effectively replace prominent retiring players.  In fact, center Shaun O'Hara still serves as a prime example of the inability to back fill positions with any type of quality, much less any continuity.

Moreover, Jerry Reese's reliance on free agency consequently reached its zenith over the last two seasons.  In my book, that's called straying from your core values.  But in terms of modern football economics, the salary cap ramifications have proven prohibitive.

That said, injuries continue sabotaging Reese's best laid plans as well.  He has spent several drafts exhausting numerous picks attempting to remedy the secondary, yet, at this very moment injuries continue ruling, if not ruining the day (see Bengals game).

Ironically, Tom Coughlin vehemently denounced injuries upon assuming head coaching duties back in 2004.  But mounting casualties at key positions already stand poised to compromise a fourth straight season, while also threatening to end Coughlin's Big Blue career on a sour note.

Make no mistake, Tom Coughlin is indeed winding down his career as head coach of the Giants.  He is 68-years old now, and his recent record will not allow a continuance unless something special happens at Giants Stadium this season.

To that I say, good luck.

As Bill Parcells used to say - You are what your record says you are.  Translated, that means the Giants are in regression.  They posted their second straight losing record last year, and failed to make the playoffs in each of Coughlin's last 3 seasons.

Moreover, the Giants have posted a 22-26 record since their last trip down Broadway's Canyon of Heroes after winning Super Bowl XLVI.

No one needs reminding, Tom Coughlin is an offensive minded coach.  But it was his friend, and former O.C. Kevin Gilbride that got scapegoated for the Giants 7-9 record and overall disappointing 2013 season.  Outwardly, we know the situation was made to appear as if Gilbride initiated his own retirement.  Our (my) better sense, however, says he paid the price in lieu of firing Coughlin.

And so the Giants moved forward last year with new Offensive Coordinator Ben McAdoo.

There is considerably less debate with regards to scapegoat number two.  Former defensive coordinator Perry Fewell earned his dismissal with honors.  Injuries took a heavy toll on Fewell's unit as well, but his philosophy and (secondary) schemes were overly confusing and wholly ineffective. Most disheartening and unbearable to watch was their absolute failure to stop the run.  That was an insult to the great history of this organization.  Perry Fewell's dismissal came years later than I had hoped, but it finally came nonetheless.

Perry Fewell is now out, and Steve Spagnuolo is back in.

The next bell, therefore, will toll for Tom Coughlin.  The Giants are not an organization that deals in lame duck coaching.  They treated Coughlin with dignity, extending him through the 2016 season.   They also provided him two new lieutenants with which to march forward.  Whether Tom Coughlin realizes the final year of his contract, however, will be decided this season.

That circles things back to Jerry Reese.

PUNT: If I'm thinking it, John Mara already knows it..!

If there's anyone within the Giants organization keenly adept at recognizing trends, whom understands the business and cyclical nature of football, that instinctively senses when proactive measures are in order, and likewise knows when to pounce, it would be the general manager's boss.

John Mara possesses what Jerry Reese does not - the ultimate bird's eye view, family DNA, a pigskin resume that dates back to the club's days at the Polo Grounds, and most importantly, the final say in all things Giants.

Jerry Reese has yet to hire a head coach during his tenure as general manager.  Tom Coughlin was Ernie Accorsi's doing.  In fact, much of what Ernie Accorsi left behind was what Reese smartly supplemented, and ultimately parlayed into a pair of Super Bowl victories... back then.

But outside of Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning, Ernie Accorsi's New York Giants narrative is complete.  The Giants 22-26 record since 2012 largely falls on the shoulders of Jerry Reese.

Not only did Ernie Accorsi assemble one of the most formidable offensive lines in Giants history, they became an NFL record setting line at that.  The Giants became and remained one of the most feared rushing teams in football in the years prior to Eli's acquisition, through his rookie and early years, and right up until the winter of 2011/2012.

Under Jerry Reese, the focused then shifted towards providing a mature Eli Manning with more down field weapons.  Many receivers have come and gone, but Reese has largely remained successful in that respect.  However, he was slow to address the offensive line, which is now the team's most worrisome liability.  In turn, the Giants running game likewise became and remains among the worst in all the NFL.

Defensively, Jerry Reese continually ignored the position of linebacker by his own design.  He no longer boasts an elite pass rusher up front, while his efforts to upgrade the secondary have been constantly stymied by injury.

Put another way, when a punter (Steve Weatherford) becomes your team's MVP by default, that team is in big trouble.  If Wellington Mara were still around, he'd agree.  But I'm positive John Mara remembers well how Dave Jennings became a Big Blue MVP punting for his Pop's ponderously bad teams of the late 1970's and early 1980's.

Presently, Jerry Reese's primary focus is rebuilding the Giants into a Super Bowl contender one last time during Eli Manning's post-prime seasons.  Eli is now 34-years old; not old by any stretch.  In terms of rebuilding this football team, however, time is of the essence.

John Mara has never been one to act hastily.  Jerry Reese is still very well respected, but I'm starting to question whether John Mara will let Jerry Reese continue his mission beyond the 2015 season.

As a Giants fan, no running game, no linebackers, poor defense - that freaks me out.

I digress.

Free from the influence of Ernie Accorsi, Jerry Reese's record is what it is.  The Giants would have to post a 10-6 record this season in order to achieve .500 since winning XLVI.

Signed,

a staunch Reese supporter...

N.Y. Giants: Note To Fans, Remember Where You Came From

From the desk of:  DO IT FOR THE DUKE

 

The Man Who Rehabilitated Animal House

NEW YORK FOOTBALL GIANTS: Before dropping blame for this season at the feet of Tom Coughlin and rushing to hasty judgment regarding his future, the general manager should be taken to task first.

Unless the Giants go 6-2 the rest of the way, they are assured of their worst record under Coach Tom Coughlin.  But this certainly wouldn't be the worst season in recent Giants history.  Or, did everyone forget Coach took over a 4-12 team from Jim Fassel, and had them in the playoffs two seasons later.

I think Jim Fassel continues to be one of the greatest x-files in Giants and NFL history.  Regarding Big Blue, let's face it, Fassel operated a Delta House, and he played Hoover.  My Giants fandom goes back to the late 70's, in the last days just before Ray Perkins took over.  After Bill Parcells left, I wallowed in self-pity, and immediately thought the Giants would never ever be good again.  Then Ray Handley happened and reaffirmed my worst nightmare.  Jim Fassel inherited some talent from the Dan Reeves days, and with GM Ernie Accorsi, turned the Giants into a contender again.  For that, I was very appreciative of Jim Fassel.

At the same time however, I knowingly turned a blind eye at his team's tremendous lack of discipline. His was the team that fought amongst themselves on the field in the playoffs against the Vikings and lost in embarrassing last-second fashion.  His was the team that looked like a deer in the headlights, and couldn't keep their (Sehorn) pants up in SB XXXV.  And his was the team that blew a 500-point lead against the 49ers in the playoffs, and lost on a botched last ditch field goal attempt.  Above all else, the team's propensity to pop-off at the mouth throughout the Fassel years was astonishing.

Coughlin took over and instantly sparked a rebellion.  By year two of Coach's dictatorship, the Big Blue doomsday clock had ticked two minutes closer to midnight.  Michael Strahan flat out hated him Coughlin and his five minute rule, and Tiki Barber infamously accused Coughlin of getting miserably outcoached after suffering a playoff blowout against the Panthers.  At that very moment, it appeared as if Tom Coughlin had just lost his locker room on national TV.  I admit, like Tiki, that game did not sit well with me either.  But at the time, Coughlin didn't care to be liked.  He was content with being feared.  Obviously, that came with consequences.  But for who?

After watching on TV and listening to Tiki Barber lash out at his coach through the media that night, one thing became very clear to me.  Tom Coughlin wasn't the one who needed to go.  Instead, I knew then, the Jim Fassel era finally needed to be purged once and for all.

On their watch, Jerry Reese and Tom Coughlin cut penalty flag magnet, Luke Petitgout, from the offensive line.  They then handed Tiki Barber's job to Brandon Jacobs.  Jerry Reese in particular told Michael Strahan to take a hike, and Jeremy Shockey was traded as far away from Eli Manning as possible.  Michael Strahan, to his credit, agreed to return to the team on Coach Coughlin's very certain terms, and became an important leader.

Since then, Coach Coughlin has evolved from the days of eliciting fear, to being respected.  Heading into SB XLVI, he was down right cuddly, telling his players he loved them.  Today, he is a little more soft spoken, but just as demanding.  Starting this year 2-6 certainly put the Giants in a very bad spot, but these Giants are not nearly as dysfunctional as the team Coach recovered nine years ago, and returned to NFL prominence.

Under Tom Couhglin, the Giants have been to the playoffs five times, including four years in a row, and of course, won two Super Bowls.  The Giants could have made it three Lombardy trophies, were it not for Plaxico Burress shooting the Giants attempt at a repeat in the thigh.  The Giants posted a 12-4 record in 2008 - their best regular season mark under Coughlin.  That season came at the exact mid-point of his tenure.

 

After long nights searching in basement archives, collecting and sifting through tons of raw data, viewing old footage, and conducting exhaustive interviews, I was painstakingly able to graph and present Tom Coughlin's career with the Giants using the latest state-of-the-art paper and pen technology known to mankind.

 

 

Over a (now) ten year run, Tom Coughlin's victory curve follows a very natural rise and decent.  The Giants went 6-10 in his first season, then went on to achieve double digit victories in four of the next six years.  By 2011, he managed to capture his second Super Bowl with an aging team on the decline. The Giants record tapered off these last two seasons, which brings us to the present.

 

The Giants are clearly in need of another overhaul.  That's not on Coach Coughlin.  Time stands still for no one, and in his tenth season, the top half of Big Blue's hour glass has just about emptied.  But in this immediate gratification society we now live in, I caution more than ever, be careful what you ask for because you just might get it.  Before dropping blame for this season at the feet of Tom Coughlin and rushing to hasty judgment regarding his future, the general manager should be taken to task first.

 

 

 

 

Mike.BTB

N.Y. Giants: Eli Manning is Now Beyond the Coach

From the desk of:   DO IT FOR THE DUKE

NEW YORK GIANTS FOOTBALL ~ In the Age of Eli,

QB Coaches No Longer Need Apply.

It is easy to say now, but since the day Big Blue drafted Eli Manning, I have always been on his side. And I'm am proud to say I never wavered.  If you knew how badly I wanted the N.Y. Mets baseball team deconstructed five years ago, you'll believe me.  If you go back to the days when Ray Perkins coached the Giants, then I think there's no doubt you'll believe me.  Both were exercises in patience over extended periods of time.  So as a fan, I was practiced in the art of suffering through rebuilding years.


There was good reason to rally around the highly touted draft pick.  Former GM Ernie Accorsi said he was the real deal.  And if you thought Bill Parcells leaving the Giants was the end of the world like I did; and that the Giants would never ever be successful again like I did; then you knew there was reason to take Ernie Accorsi at his word.  He made the Giants good again.  With great relief, Giants fans started to see daylight on Sundays again by the time Jim Fassel, John Fox, and Ernie Accorsi were running things around here.


I had a great appreciation for what Accorsi built in Cleveland with the old Browns.  I speak of the team which came up short two consecutive times, victimized by last minute touchdown drives orchestrated by John Elway and the Broncos in dual AFC Championship games of the late 80's.


I agreed with pulling the plug on Kurt Warner and effectively sabotaging a good start to the 2004 Giants' season, and handing the ball off to Eli no matter how much the cry babies who played under Fassel didn't like it.  I'm not going to name names.  But the truth is, they were an immature and entitled bunch who made conditions hard for a kid QB to grow up in.


Eli's rookie season was rough.  There's no denying that.  But you must be willing to endure that sort of thing.  And besides, wholesale changes were at the Giants' door steps.  So why not let him get in some on-the-job training for nine games?  That 2004 team wasn't going to win a Super Bowl anyway.  That was the same team that quit on Jim Fassel, remember?  Tom Coughlin knew at once, Kurt Warner was useless to him, and that the sooner he got Eli uncorked, the sooner, and better his tenure, and the team would be.


In his first full season, Eli threw seventeen interceptions.  But he also threw twenty-four touchdowns, and passed for over 3,700 yards.  Maybe I'm just getting old.  But where I come from, that used to mean a lot.  Not only that, but Eli showed he was very adept at the two-minute drill, and late game management and comebacks, even then.  So there was much to feel optimistic about.  He just needed to develop.  The criticisms levied by some of his team mates were extremely misguided.  Just look at one of the messengers in particular, who had a habit of throwing anyone in his way under the bus.  Thing is, he spoke well into a microphone, and the media ate it up, and fed it right back to salivating fans.


In the Super Bowl season of 2007, Eli threw his highest interception total to that point in his four year career.  But if you ask me, the biggest difference in Eli Manning's play that season came when the Giants hired Chris Palmer to be their QB Coach.  The relationship between him and Eli took time to percolate as with any.  But after a near full season working together, by December and through the playoffs, I think the Chris Palmer Effect and how he influenced Eli's performance goes incredibly under spoken; if not unrecognized.  Chris Palmer previously worked together with Tom Coughlin in Jacksonville.  So you can call this correlation a coincidence if you like.  But I tend not to.  I do believe one had something to do with the other.


In January of 2010, Chris Palmer retired.  Tom Coughlin selected Mike Sullivan to be his next QB coach.  In 2004, he served as Tom Coughlin's Wide Receivers coach, and now he was the QB coach?  No, sorry.  Not a good move here.  Needless to say, Eli immediately proceeded to set his new career high for interceptions in a season with twenty-five.  The grumblings and uneasiness between Eli and Sullivan did not go unnoticed either.


I believe many factors played into Eli's outrageous twenty-five pics during the 2010 season.   Eli  deserves a share of blame for throwing many passes too high.  Kevin Gilbride deserves a handsome share of blame for countless bouts of extremely unnecessary pass play selection.  And then a chunk of blame goes to the receivers for tipping a slew of passes into the air and putting the ball up for grabs.


But for the second consecutive season and the first time with Mike Sullivan, Eli cracked the 4,000 yard passing mark, after four straight seasons breaking 3,000 yards with Palmer around.  Additionally, for the first time, Eli exceeded thirty touchdown passes in a season.


Aggravated as both Eli and Coach Sullivan were with the 2010 season, Eli was out-growing the need for a mentor anyway.  Wasn't he?  Eli is now the teacher.  His receivers are the grasshoppers.  Over the last two and three seasons, a preponderance of injuries have plagued the Giants Wide Receiver and Tight End positions.  Eli has taken each and every player tasked with stepping in, and made them all productive.  By the 2011 season, Eli's interceptions were back down to a more manageable sixteen.  Oh, and he won his second Super Bowl MVP award.


Moving forward, I honestly believe Eli's best days are ahead of him.  Aw Shucks Eli is the freakin' Mann now!  Quarterback coaches need not apply.





Mike.BTB