John Harbaugh’s hiring as head coach felt like one of the best final result for the Giants‘ group in 2026.
The franchise wanted to be gutted, restructured and rebuilt by a real chief with a brand new imaginative and prescient, to say nothing of requiring a greater monitor report within the NFL Draft and in common season video games on Sundays.
Harbaugh, based mostly on his monitor report, ought to present the soundness that the Maras and Tisches are in search of.
The opposite precedence of the Giants’ teaching search, nonetheless, was to do what was finest for franchise quarterback Jaxson Dart.
Each NFL workforce solely goes so far as its QB is ready to take them.
And when Harbaugh’s Plan A for offensive coordinator fell by on Wednesday, with Todd Monken taking the Cleveland Browns’ head teaching job, it created uncertainty about how the Giants will accomplish that for Dart within the quick time period.
The Giants place confidence in Harbaugh to construct a robust workers, in fact. The issue is that New York was not engaged in any sweeping search of OC candidates thus far, as a result of Monken to the Giants was considered largely as a foregone conclusion.
So now Harbaugh and the Giants should enter late into the sweepstakes for a brand new OC with some candidates off the board, together with former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, who simply took the Los Angeles Chargers job working for Harbaugh’s brother, Jim, and training Justin Herbert.
New Miami Dolphins OC Bobby Slowik and new Lions OC Drew Petzing additionally may have been contenders within the Giants’ search however now are already set of their new roles. Former Giants OC and interim head coach Mike Kafka is gone to a non-playcalling offensive assistant function with Detroit, as properly.
And now the Giants are competing with the Philadelphia Eagles, the Baltimore Ravens and the Jets as a result of sudden timeline of this search.
Harbaugh may need been one of the best head teaching match for the Giants, but when they’d gone with Kevin Stefanski or Mike McCarthy as a substitute, they wouldn’t have to fret about scrambling to search out the person to teach their quarterback.
Their head coach would have been that man. So that is the danger of prioritizing a “CEO” head coach over an offensive specialist or play-caller.
That doesn’t imply they received’t discover an offensive coordinator who is a good match.
Kliff Kingsbury, the previous Washington Commanders OC, is essentially the most intriguing out there candidate based mostly on Jayden Daniels’ rookie 12 months run to the NFC Championship Sport in 2024.
Travis Switzer, the Ravens’ run sport coordinator, feels just like the probably rent if Harbaugh chooses a coach who brings each familiarity and a resume that appeals to Dart’s dual-threat ability set.
Dart is making it recognized internally that he helps Charlie Weis Jr., his former Ole Miss OC who’s now beneath contract at LSU. And Alex Tanney, the previous Giants backup quarterback and Colts passing sport coordinator, entered the combination on Thursday as an actual chance.
Lunda Wells, the Dallas Cowboys tight ends coach, additionally deserves an in depth look.
When names like Colts offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter began getting related to the Giants’ OC emptiness, although, it’s time to surprise the place precisely the Giants’ search is definitely going to land — and what impression it can have on Dart’s vital second professional season.
Not solely would Cooter’s hiring be an uninspiring pivot; relying on him or Tanney feels prefer it may find yourself being simply as dangerous as hoping for Broncos quarterback coach Davis Webb.
None of those coaches’ interviews, updates and hirings or firings occur in a vacuum. All the pieces has a ripple impact. And the dominoes generally fall shortly and depart groups on the skin wanting in.
Webb, for instance, has been interviewing for head teaching vacancies. Whereas he’s been interviewing, Broncos head coach Sean Payton fired Denver offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi coming off a visit to the AFC Championship Sport.
The Giants can be proper to covet Webb, however that scenario seems to be like Payton fired Lombardi so he can promote Webb to offensive coordinator in Denver as soon as he fails to land a head teaching job.
That may take one candidate off the board. Then take a look at the pair of Colts coaches.
Cooter is taken into account a severe candidate in Philly, the place the Eagles are casting a large web that seems to have a pair holes in it.
Tanney’s title developing on Thursday may imply he has an actual probability at coming to New York. Or it may simply be creating leverage for Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen to advertise Tanney as Daniel Jones’ OC in Indy as soon as Cooter bolts for the Metropolis of Brotherly Love.
That may take one other candidate off the board.
What Giants followers needs to be rooting for is for the Ravens to rent somebody apart from Kingsbury.
The Maras and Tiches have full belief in Harbaugh to search out the fitting man after failing to ship Monken. However there are questions proper now about the place this search will land and what it can imply for Dart.
And though this isn’t a sport that can present up within the NFL’s standings, it’s truthful to deal with this search as Harbaugh’s first important problem because the Giants’ head coach:
The problem of discovering the coach that’s finest for Dart and, by extension, finest for the Giants in 2026 and past.
