The New York Giants have finally relieved incumbent Offensive Coordinator Jason Garrett of his duties. This is a move that a large majority of the fan base has been clamoring for since the end of the 2020 season. Garrett’s offense has been at the bottom of the league in most categories since he took over last season, and an embarrassing effort last night was the final nail in the coffin for Head Coach Joe Judge. The move was absolutely necessary, but did it come too late?
The Giants hiring of Jason Garrett almost 2 years ago was met with a mixed reaction. Personally, I liked the move at the time. I thought a guy like Garrett, who had a ton of head coaching experience with a number of good offenses in Dallas could be a huge asset to Coach Judge. Well, I was wrong. Garrett’s offense finished 31st in the NFL in 2020, and led to a major statistical regression for the Giants most important player. Daniel Jones was on pace to break the rookie touchdown record in 2019 before injuring his ankle late in the year. He finishied that season with 24 touchdowns in just 13 games. A year later under Garrett, Jones finished with just 11 touchdowns in 13 and a half games. This was an eye opening statistic to everyone around the league. I’ll give credit where credit is due, he helped Jones cut down on his turnovers, and incorporated Jones’s legs into the offense more, but that wasn’t enough. Garrett’s offense did not help Jones progress into the quarterback that the fan base hoped he would become, and that is why this firing should have happened last January. Waiting this long could not only hurt Jones, but the Head Coach who hired him as well.
Joe Judge lit the fan base on fire with his opening press conference in January of 2020. He seemed like a man with a plan. He hired a Defensive Coordinator in Patrick Graham who many questioned, including myself. That man turned out to be a great hire, and also happens to be Judge’s Assistant Head Coach. Most of the other coaches on Judge’s staff also have ties to him through either college or the NFL. This is why the hire of Garrett seems so out of place. Judge had no previous attachments to Garrett, which led many to question if this was more of a John Mara hire than a Joe Judge one. Judge has denied this, but at the end of the day, it was Judge who held on to him for this long. Garrett is an extension of Judge, so Judge is far from innocent in the offense’s ineptitude. Waiting until there was 7 games left in the season to fire Garrett could lead to Judge receiving the same fate he just gave to Garrett.
The Jason Garrett dismissal was a move that had to be made. There’s no question about that, and no one would have asked too many questions if it was done in January either. Joe Judge’s decision to hold on to Jason Garrett for this long could lead to the end of his tenure as Giant’s Head Coach, and more importantly Daniel Jones’s time as Quarterback. One can only hope these next these 7 games lead to the opposite.
