December 31, 2017
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz is the 'favorite' to land the New York Giants' head coaching opening.
The Giants 'won' their tug of war with the Eagles in hiring Ben McAdoo during the 2016 offseason, but after a disastrous 2017 season in which the Giants started 2-10, McAdoo was fired. The Giants were the only team to fire their head coach during the season, and thus had a head start over the rest of the NFL in choosing their new head coach.
Schwartz could be the first coach hired, or least the first with the parameters of a deal in place this offseason.
The Giants' decision to hire Schwartz, should it come to fruition, is interesting. With soon-to-be 37-year-old Eli Manning very clearly in decline, a strong quarterback class in the 2018 NFL Draft, and the Giants picking second overall, logic would indicate that the Giants will soon have a highly drafted rookie quarterback to begin building around. With the recent overwhelming success of the Eagles and Los Angeles Rams surrounding their young quarterbacks with quarterback-focused coaching staffs, the Giants would be shunning the copycat approach by hiring a defensive-minded head coach.
Schwartz will interview with the Giants within the next week, per Schefter, while the Eagles have their first round bye.
During the week of the Eagles' game against the Los Angeles Rams, Schwartz was asked if he aspired to be a head coach in the NFL again.
"I'll pass on that question," he said. "We have enough to get ready for the Rams, and I think it does nobody any good to mention that. There is really no right way to answer that. If you answer it and say, ‘Yes,’ then your eyes are on the wrong thing. You answer it and say, ‘No,’ then people -- it's just not the right time or place to talk about that stuff. We have our hands full with the No. 1 scoring offense in the NFL this week."
The Eagles will have their hands full with whoever they play in their first playoff game as well.
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