ESNY Podcast: New York Giants Head Coach Ben McAdoo Discussion

The New York Giants have named Ben McAdoo their new head coach.

Offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo has been promoted to take over the team that has missed the playoffs the past four seasons, a person familiar with the decision told The Associated Press on Wednesday. They met again Wednesday, when he also spoke with team chairman Steve Tisch and treasurer Jonathan Tisch.

McAdoo, whose success with quarterback Eli Manning during his two seasons as a coordinator burnished his head-coaching résumé, said whatever roster he had would be “committed to discipline and poise” and that his message to the players would be about pride and work ethic. “If he had left and gone somewhere else we probably would have been very upset about that”, Mara said. Ben has been preparing for this opportunity since he started coaching, and he has earned his stripes every step of the way.

“I’m honoured. It has been a privilege to work and learn under coach Coughlin”.

The Giants have something to prove. Coughlin was not fired, but given his club’s four-year absence from the postseason, it’s safe to assume that the Giants hierarchy gently shoved the veteran coach aside. They meant to interview Cincinnati offensive coordinator Hue Jackson on Thursday, but he accepted the Browns job hours before the Giants decided on McAdoo. Under McAdoos leadership, Manning threw 65 touchdowns and 28 interceptions the past two seasons. He has 18 touchdowns and 27 interceptions in 2013. “I have been preparing for this moment my entire professional life”. NY scored 380 points in 2014 and 420 this past season – the latter ranking fifth in franchise history.

“This is the capital of the world, and the football capital of the world and with that comes a certain amount of pressure, pressure I look forward to”, McAdoo told reporters, including CBS2’s Otis Livingston. We’ll have open dialogue back and forth, and we’ll communicate on what we feel our needs are and how we can get better and improve, but at the end of the day, it’s about the coaches and the personnel and the locker room all pulling in the same direction.

“I take that personally and I accept my share, this is all under my watch, and I know we need to get better as an organization”, Mara said.

But even after two seasons of six wins a piece, the Giants went ahead with their succession plan, promoting their offensive coordinator to head coach.

Packers coach Mike McCarthy remembers meeting McAdoo at an National Football League combine in Indianapolis when McAdoo was a lower-level coach. “The first thing that came to mind two years ago was that this guy is a teacher and he’s got an edge to him”. “I was aware of that, but that was not the factor that a lot of you make it out to be”. Before going to Kansas City, he was Reid’s quarterbacks coach in Philadelphia after starting as a quality control coach. He began as an assistant high school coach during his sophomore year at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and followed up by plying his trade in college ball.

With the Dolphins hiring Adam Gase and the Giants reportedly retaining Ben McAdoo, it appears the Eagles have locked in on a top choice to fill their head coaching vacancy – Tom Coughlin.

The Giants (6-10) had the NFL’s eighth-ranked offense in total yards and were No. 6 in scoring in 2015.

The San Francisco 49ers also had their eye on Coughlin.

He has transformed the Giants offense in two seasons, turning around Eli Manning’s career.