E-GIANTS
Dave Klein was the Giants' beat writer for The Star-Ledger from 1961 to 1995.
He is the author of 26 books and he is one of only three sportswriters to have covered all the Super Bowls. Dave has allowed TEAM GIANTS to reprint some of his articles.

A COLLECTION OF STORIES
VETERAN FREE AGENTS THE GIANTS WANT,
AND REACTION TO THE "FIRING" OF TOM COUGHLIN

By Dave Klein
Any day now (March 7, to be exact, which is next Monday) veteran free agent signings will begin to be announced, and for those deeply involved in what the Giants might do, here is a sampling of what we've learned.

Apparently, their No. 1 target on their board is Cincinnati wide receiver Marvin Jones, a 6-2, 200-pounder who has completed the required four seasons. Jones, a product of the University of California, caught 65 passes for 816 yards and four touchdowns last season,

"What he needs most," says an almost always reliable NFL personnel scout, "is to get out of the shadow of A.J. Jones. This kid could be a star." And one likes to think with the passes coming from Eli Manning instead of Andy Dalton, he'll have no problem.

And after all, isn't new head coach Ben McAdoo an offensive savant?

If their desire is as strong as the source indicated, doesn't this mean there are still lingering doubts concerning Victor Cruz, who just announced the other day that he has started running? Or, possibly, couldn't it mean that they are finally fed up with the unpredictable Rueben Randle who, it seems, has never met a playbook he likes (or understands)?

In any case, there is a plethora of veterans available, any number of whom would prove to be invaluable to the Giants in their attempt to get back to normalcy (or at least winning a few more games than they lose). Among them, the Giants like (and in no particular order):

Denver defensive end Malik Jackson; Denver linebacker Danny Travathan; Seattle linebacker-defensive end Bruce Irvin; Kansas City linebacker-defensive end Tamba Hall and Kansas City linebacker Derrick Johnson. Notice a pattern here? Did you get that they are all defensive players, and that none of them play in the secondary?

And the Giants do have more cap money to spend than any other team in the NFL, which will prove to be an insurmountable advantage unless they start wasting it - but they never do that, right?

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Reaction to former head coach Tom Coughlin ("I really hate that word," he says) continues to come in and is decidedly mixed

. From E-GIANTS subscriber John F. -- Here are my two cents on all this (view from the cheap seats): If I had to put the blame in some order I would go (1) medical and strength training staff, (2) Jerry Reese, (3) Tom Coughlin.

I think leading the league in injuries three years in a row, and being in the top 10 of injuries seven years in a row, according to Football Outsiders (Adjusted Games Lost - AGL) is a much bigger deal than is typically being reported. Thanks for including it in your article. Having the most injuries one year is bad, two years could be unlucky, but THREE years? According to Football Outsiders, no other team has had the most injuries even two years in a row, going back to 2000, to say nothing of three years.

And the Giants didn't just sneak into that top spot. They earned it by a wide margin. Something or several somethings is significantly wrong in the Giants medical/training department. Until they get those injuries down to at least the league average, even with good drafts, the Giants will keep spinning their wheels. How much responsibility does Ronnie Barnes (Senior V.P. Medical Services) have in all this?

Looking at the draft track record over the last several years, I am still amazed Jerry Reese is still general manager. The Giants are considered by some to have one of the weakest rosters in the league now. I don't understand how Reese can smugly stand before the reporters and defend his record.

I can understand that it might have been time for new leadership at the head coaching position. I can at least rationalize that, but I think management botched this whole thing up pretty badly. I hate to say this, but it brings back bad memories of the 1970's. Hopefully it's not that bad. This next year is as pivotal of a year as the Giants have had in many years.

And from Lyle W. -- Coach Coughlin was responsible for the exercise program which has been the worst in the NFL. The odds (30,000 to 1) of having the most injuries for three consecutive seasons is damning.

However, he is not to blame for last minute losses. Yes, he made some bad judgment calls. However, if he had the personnel to run out the clock (i.e., a better running game featuring a franchise RB and/or a better offensive line), he would have never have had to make those judgments (as we would have been able to run out the clock in at least four of those losses). Guess who is responsible for the aforementioned?

Anyway, the owners knew that they would have a largesse of cap funds during the off-season to spend on FAs for the upcoming season. Would they be able to TRUST someone else other than Reese to spend their bounty given their familiarity with him and family-like organizational atmosphere?

So John Mara and Steve Tisch had to make a decision as they had promised the fan base (after 2014) that there would be changes if they did not make the playoffs in 2015. So, someone had to go; unfortunately, it was Coughlin (and unfortunately Reese had to be retained).

What did George Young once say? No matter how much they deny it, it's always about the money (and that seems to be why Reese is still here).

And finally, from Carl V. -- I still feel burned by Bill Parcells leaving and I'm told by all my fellow Giants fans to get over it. I'm trying. But "business-cruel" is the way of the world - in the petroleum business, banking and IT. Dollars and cents. But "sense" is not always "smart." Also Coughlin was slipping in the last two years -- especially clock and time management (which is really ironic given there is "Coughlin Time" at the old Timex building.

I had to stop reading your piece today after the first section: It's terrible what the Giants did to Tom Coughlin. I totally disagree with you. It was time and the Giants could have lost yet another coordinator during the course of their history. While it may not have been a very professional or mature way to ask/tell a great coach after so many years that he needs to leave or move on from an organization, there is a precedence in team history for "letting go" a coach or coordinator prematurely only to rue the day they did. Here are some names I dug up while researching.

   1) Vince Lombardi (Offensive Coordinator) was "let go" after the 1958 season and went on to be Green Bay's coach for nine years while the Giants were entering their darkest years in their history. Oh, and by the way, there's a trophy named after him, too. This doesn't sit too well, does it?

   2) Tom Laundry (Defensive Coordinator) was "let go" after the 1959 season and went on to be Dallas' Head Coach for 29 years!

   3) Joe Walton (Offensive Coordinator) was "let go" after the 1973 season and went on to be Washington and the Jet's Offensive Coordinator and then their head coach for seven years (54-59-1).

   4) Marty Schottenheimer (Defensive Coordinator) was "let go" after 1977 season and ultimately went on to coach Cleveland, Kansas City and San Diego for the next 20 years. His name would surface constantly as a Giants candidate for many, many years after 1997.

   4) Mike Nolan (Defensive Coordinator) was "let go" after the 1996 season to go on as a DC for Washington, the Jets and Baltimore (and spent one year as a wide receivers coach). Ultimately he went on to be San Francisco's head coach in 2005 and then continued as a Defensive Coordinator for Denver. Miami and Atlanta.

   5) John Fox (Defensive Coordinator) was "let go" after the 2001 season and went to be head coach for Carolina, Denver and still is with the Bears. He also took teams to the Super Bowl.

   6) Sean Payton (Offensive Coordinator) was "let go" after the 2002 season and went on to be the Dallas assistant head coach and ultimately head coach of New Orleans Saints and still is - and has a Super Bowl victory, too.

I think the Giants got it right for the first time back in 1982 when they didn't let Bill Parcells go and retained him as their head coach. How did that work out? Pretty well, I think.

So I think retaining Ben McAdoo will be, and is, a very smart move. History speaks for itself. Coughlin should take the high road and either help the team or move on and enjoy his grandkids or take his wife on a long overdue trip.

P.S. I also found this out and should be in the "Did You Know" files: Jim Fassel was the offensive coordinator for the Giants back in 1992 under Ray Handley ("He Who Shall Not Be Named"). I do remember Rod "Read and React" Rust as the defensive coordinator who successfully got every defensive player to hate him. Go ask Lawrence Taylor.

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