The New York Giants are in need of a new special teams coordinator after firing long-time assistant Thomas McGaughey on Monday.
Here are eight quick names the team might look at.
Note: Some of these candidates may currently be employed with other teams and would require termination (or resignation) before joining the Giants.
Joe Judge
With the New England Patriots on the precipice of ‘blowing things up’ and wiping the Bill Belichick era clean, Joe Judge will likely be on the market again.
He’s shown he’s not really head coaching material, but the guy can still coach at the NFL level as an assistant.
Judge comes from the same coaching tree as head coach Brian Daboll and there is familiarity here. In fact, Judge initially wanted to hire Daboll as his offensive coordinator with the Giants but the Bills denied the interview.
When the Giants played the Patriots in December, many of the Giant players who played for Judge had nothing but praise for him.
Bob Ligashesky
Bob Ligashesky would have been a great hire for the Giants, but they were too slow on the trigger. He was hired by the University of Minnesota on Monday to run their special teams.
Ligashesky has been coaching special teams on both the college and NFL levels for over 35 years and has a Super Bowl ring to his credit.
They could potentially lure him away from Minnesota with a lucrative contract but it seems highly unlikely now.
Larry Izzo
Larry Izzo was a former special team ace as a player who has become one of the more respected coaches in the NFL.
He was the Giants’ special teams assistant for the Giants under Tim Quinn from 2011-15 and has a Super Bowl ring as a result.
Izzo has been the Seattle Seahawks’ special teams coordinator since 2021 and is still under contract to them as far as we know. He would be a great get if general manager Joe Schoen can work some magic.
Doug Colman
New Jersey native Doug Colman was a Giants draft pick in the late 90s as a linebacker and special teamer out of Nebraska.
After a six-year playing career, Colman went into coaching, mainly special teams. He has been an assistant in Houston and Dallas and is currently an assistant with the Cleveland Browns.
He is worth an interview, at least.
Mike Adams
Mike Adams is currently the Giants’ assistant special teams coordinator.
Adams had a long NFL career, playing for six teams over 16 seasons and then coaching the past three years, for the Chicago Bears and then the Giants.
He should also get the benefit of an interview.
Stephen Thomas
Stephen Thomas is another internal possibility as he was also an assistant to McGaughey.
Before joining the Giants spent four seasons with the Detroit Lions as a defensive quality control coach.
Cory Harkey
Cory Harkey, a former tight end with the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, has been the assistant special teams coach for the Buffalo Bills for the past two seasons.
Harkey is the son of former major league pitcher and current New York Yankees bullpen coach Mike Harkey.
Nate Kaczor
Nate Kaczor has been the special teams coordinator of the Washington commanders since 2019 and held the same positions with several other teams (Tampa Bay, Tennessee).
If Kazcor isn’t retained by the new head coach in Washington, he could be a possibility for the Giants.
