NEW YORK — While Brian Daboll tries to fix the Giants’ offense, Don Martindale will turn their defense into, well, a second offense.
The Giants have hired Martindale as their new defensive coordinator, a source confirmed to The New York Daily News on Wednesday, landing a respected coach with a calling card for in-your-face playcalling and relentless blitzing.
“Wink” Martindale, 58, blitzed his Baltimore Ravens more than any other NFL defense for three years running from 2018-2020. They fell to sixth overall in 2021 as Martindale tried to compensate for a slew of injuries to his secondary.
There is enthusiasm on the team for Martindale’s hiring. He has already reached out to players who have told The News they’re excited to play for him, a coordinator constantly in attack mode with frequent single-high and zero-safety looks.
The Giants have lacked pass rushing talent for a long while and Martindale’s blitz rates hopefully will help generate pressure on opposing quarterbacks regardless. The Ravens blitzed 39.6% of the time in 2018, 54.9% of the time in 2019 and 44.1% in 2020 before that dropped to 31.1% this season.
And those first three seasons of QB pressure coincided with one of the best scoring defenses: second, third and second in points allowed, respectively, before 19th in 2021.
It didn’t hurt that the Ravens are one of the NFL’s gold standard front offices with a track record of strong drafts and talent depth, compared to the Giants’ near-barren roster thanks to Dave Gettleman. And it will be interesting to see how married Martindale remains to his all-out attack style if he doesn’t feel his unit can play man coverage and leave players on islands.
Former DC Pat Graham tried to pivot to more man coverage to start his second and final season, and the players couldn’t do it. So he simplified the scheme and returned to the match zone concepts that helped the Giants defense hold things together in their 6-10 season of 2020, as well.
Graham was consistent with his blitzes as the Giants DC at 26.9% in 2020 (21st in NFL) and 25% in 2021 (16th).
Landing Martindale after Graham’s departure is a best-case scenario for the Giants, who wanted Graham to stay but clearly didn’t fully understand the potential consequences of their actions while blowing Joe Judge out the door.
Martindale interviewed and was a contender for the Giants’ head coaching job two years ago that ultimately went to Judge. And the injury-filled Ravens season this year accelerated an unexpected departure from Baltimore after he and the team reportedly couldn’t agree to a one-year contract extension through 2023.
Daboll had Martindale lined up as his defensive coordinator before the Giants even hired him, though, a source told the Daily News weeks ago, if the position opened. And it did. And here is Wink, ready to command that side of the ball and hopefully complement an improved offense with an aggressive and effective defense.
JUDGE RETURNS TO PATRIOTS
The New England Patriots announced on Tuesday that Judge, the former Giants coach, will be returning to Bill Belichick’s staff as an offensive assistant.
This is an intriguing next step for Judge, 40, who will focus full time on the side of the ball that was his 2021 Giants team’s weakest link.
Coaches often have more significant responsibilities under Belichick than their amorphous titles indicate. So it’s not out of the question Judge could get into play-calling at some point, based on precedent, to round out his resume for his next head coaching opportunity.
Judge had options, but my understanding is the Patriots and Foxborough are the best overall fit for both football and family.
Judge is under contract with the Giants for three more years. So the Giants will pay him to help Mac Jones and the Patriots try to win Belichick his seventh Super Bowl, minus the difference of whatever New England shells out.
OFF THE MARK
The Giants announced that co-director of player personnel Mark Koncz is out. Koncz came in with Gettleman and now is jettisoned with him, too. His departure leaves Tim McDonnell as the Giants’ lone director of player personnel working with new GM Joe Schoen and new assistant GM Brandon Brown.
