MOBILE, Ala. — Offseason? What offseason?
For the Giants’ coaches and front office staff, the end of the regular season ushered in a new phase, this one without the players in the building.
First came the analysis of what went right (not enough) and what went wrong (too much) to produce a record of 6-11.
Next came the concerted efforts to make sure those failures do not stage a comeback in 2024. That leads us to where the Giants’ brass will be this week, attending workouts and scouting NFL Draft prospects at the Senior Bowl.
This event comes on the heels of the East-West Shrine Bowl, the first scheduled All-Star game for college draft prospects, held in Frisco, Texas.
The Shrine Bowl and Senior Bowl do not include the top, top talent that will be scooped up in the first round on April 25, but there is more than a sprinkling of quality players who will stick on NFL rosters.
Here are a few storylines for the Giants as they spend time in Alabama’s Gulf Coast:
Getting defensive
It is close to that time — time for the Giants to select and hire a new defensive coordinator. It feels as if Dennard Wilson is the favorite and now that the Ravens are eliminated from the playoffs, the road is clear to bring him in. Wilson, 41, completed his first year in Baltimore as the defensive backs coach. Before that, he coached the defensive backs and served as the passing game coordinator for the Eagles and before that, filled those roles with the Jets.
Wilson has already interviewed twice with head coach Brian Daboll and things could get finalized, with Wilson or perhaps another candidate, this week. The Rams and Titans are also interested in Wilson. Wink Martindale has yet to hook on with another team after the unsavoriness of what was termed a mutual parting of the ways with the Giants.
The Giants will not lose their assistant general manager, as Brandon Brown did not get the general manager job with the Chargers. Joe Horitz, the Ravens director of player personnel, on Monday reportedly was hired for that role. Brown interviewed twice with the Chargers and also met with the Panthers for the GM job that went to Dan Morgan. If Brown left for a general manager position, the Giants would have received an extra third round draft pick in 2024 and 2025. Brown came to the Giants in 2023 from the Eagles.
Check out the QBs
No, Caleb Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels will not be here. Those three, most likely in that order, are considered the top quarterbacks in this draft and actually could go off the board 1, 2, 3 in the first round if the Bears, Commanders and Patriots all go that route. Most of the quarterbacks in the next tier will be competing and showing off their skills at the Senior Bowl.
The Giants own the No. 6 overall pick. If they opt to find and select Daniel Jones’ eventual replacement, they might be interested in Bo Nix from Oregon. Other quarterbacks at the Senior Bowl include Michael Penix Jr. (Washington), Sam Hartman (Notre Dame), Spencer Rattler (South Carolina) or Joe Milton (Tennessee).
Remember, there is more than one round in the draft and the Giants could dip into the quarterback market on the second day (rounds 2 and 3). Nix, based on his physical skills, could see his stock rise with a solid week here.
Getting an edge
The top overall prospect in Mobile this week is probably Laiatu Latu, an edge rusher from UCLA. Wouldn’t you know it, the Giants have a glaring need at that spot, with none of their defenders other than Kayvon Thibodeaux (11.5 sacks) in 2023 coming close to double-digits in sacks.
Is No. 6 too high for Latu? Most likely, yes, but the Giants will get a good look at a player who amassed 13 sacks this past season and a whopping 21.5 tackles for loss.
Latu is trying to become the first edge rusher off the board in what looks like a three-way competition with Dallas Turner (Alabama) and Jared Verse (Florida State).
Protection plan
You cannot get through any list of the failings of the Giants without hitting high on the offensive line, a unit that was truly offensive in 2023, allowing a franchise record 85 sacks.
They are set at left tackle with Andrew Thomas but there is no way this team can go into next season penciling in Evan Neal as the starting right tackle without adding competition. That is how distressingly bad (and injury-riddled) Neal — the No. 7 overall pick in 2022 — was in his second NFL season.
The top-rated offensive tackles in this draft will not be at the Senior Bowl. The best one here is Taliese Fuaga from Oregon State, projected to go in the first round. His fit in the NFL: Right tackle.
Upward mobility
This week provides an opportunity for two members of Daboll’s staff to move up one rank from the roles they fill with the Giants. Shea Tierney, the Giants’ quarterbacks coach, will serve as the offensive coordinator for the National team.
Mike Adams, the Giants’ assistant special teams coach, will be the special teams coordinator for the American team. Tierney and Adams will fill these roles for the entire week of practices and the actual game on Saturday. T
his is the second year the Senior Bowl has implemented a “Coach Up” format. Head coaches and general managers for all non-playoff teams and wild-card teams were given the opportunity to nominate assistant coaches for these elevations and the candidates were picked by a group of NFL executives and representatives from the General Managers Advisory Committee.