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Jordan Raanan, ESPN Staff Writer
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The divorce became final on Wednesday afternoon when the New York Giants and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale officially parted ways. It took a few days and some ugliness from both sides to get there, but it eventually happened.
Martindale gets to leave and land wherever he pleases, with no restrictions. The Giants get out of the final year of his contract and don’t have to pay the $3 million he was owed for next season.
It leaves coach Brian Daboll in the position of needing to fill the defensive coordinator spot heading into a critical Year 3.
“It would be very tough,” starting middle linebacker Bobby Okereke said on Sunday about the possibility of losing Martindale.
He later added: “It really starts at the top. It starts with Wink, the way he coaches. The way he leads. Just the energy, the fire, the passion that he imposes on us. He really steers the ship.”
The Giants’ defense under Martindale finished 27th in the NFL allowing 361.7 yards per game. When they were bad, it got really bad. But if you watched, it was the team’s best unit — by a wide margin.
Martindale’s defense tied for the NFL lead with 31 takeaways. There were six games where they allowed less than 20 points. In comparison, the Cleveland Browns were the NFL’s top-ranked defense allowing 270.2 yards per game, but also allowed less than 20 points six times.
New York’s defense appeared headed in the right direction the second half of this season, only to get derailed by the soured relationship between Martindale and Daboll. Now, it needs to start over.
The tricky part here is not hiring just a good coordinator. There are plenty of quality options available (see below). It’s that the Giants will almost certainly have to start from scratch on that side of the ball. They will likely have to learn a new defense and scheme, with new verbiage and responsibilities. This will take time.
The personnel that was assembled by general manager Joe Schoen and his staff the past two years was to fit Martindale’s blitz-heavy 3-4 scheme. Whatever the new defensive coordinator decides to run, it will take time to perfect.
Continuity matters in this league.
“There is big benefits to that,” Martindale said last week. “You’re always looking to get better as far as where you want to go with players and wherever else you need to get better at.”
Clearly whoever is next has a lot of work to do in a difficult situation. But it’s still a good job, in a big market, on a team that has some talent. There will be suitors.
Here are some options to be the next Giants defensive coordinator:
Leslie Frazier: Connect the dots between Daboll/Schoen and Frazier. They all worked together in Buffalo. Frazier even came to visit the Giants in the spring as he worked toward trying to get a head coaching job. The additional dynamic that must be taken into consideration: Frazier is interviewing for the Los Angeles Chargers head coaching vacancy.
Andre Patterson: The Giants’ defensive line coach is one of two potential in-house options (along with defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson). He’s well-liked by his players, in part because of his aggressive, get-up-the-field approach. There is a benefit to sticking with Patterson or Henderson. It would somewhat minimize the difficulty of the impending transition. Patterson does have some experience as a co-defensive coordinator for two seasons under Mike Zimmer in Minnesota.
Jerome Henderson: The Giants’ defensive backs coach was hired by Joe Judge in 2020 and retained by Daboll. He doesn’t have defensive coordinator experience but was the passing game coordinator with the Falcons before coming to New York. Henderson is known as smart and relatable, able to challenge guys without making it personal. Like Patterson, he probably wouldn’t run the same scheme as Martindale, but it seems likely they would keep some things the same so it wouldn’t be a complete overhaul for the returning players.
DeMarcus Covington: Here’s a young up-and-comer who many believe is ready for the jump. The 34-year-old, who is the defensive line coach, was in the running for the Cardinals’ defensive coordinator job last season. He’s energetic with a unique ability to relate to his players. It’s only a matter of time before someone gives him a shot as a coordinator.
Matt Patricia: Who knows if he’s even available? Patricia is calling defensive plays for the Eagles the past few weeks. But if he does become available, there is a connection to Daboll from their time together in New England. Daboll even went up to Patricia immediately upon taking the field during the first meeting between the Giants and the Eagles this season to share a friendly embrace. Patricia does have success as a defensive coordinator in the NFL and could be a plug-and-coach option. You could just hand him the keys and let him be the defensive boss.
Eric Washington: Another potential candidate who worked with Daboll and Schoen with the Bills. Washington is the assistant head coach/defensive line coach in Buffalo. But it’s Sean McDermott calling the plays. This would give Washington an opportunity to run the show with the Giants. He also has two years’ experience as the defensive coordinator under Ron Rivera in Carolina.
Antonio Pierce: He listed only because the Giants think highly of their former middle linebacker. That was obvious earlier this year. But he’s likely to be a head coach after filling in admirably as the interim after Josh McDaniels was fired. The Giants saw it firsthand when they were obliterated by the Raiders in Pierce’s first game as coach.
Others: Patrick Graham, Chris Kiffin, Sean Desai
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