Make-or-break season for Giants GM
The Giant Insider|August 2020
G-MAN ON THE G-MEN
Kevin Gleason
Make-or-break season for Giants GM

LOOKING FOR A PAYOFF Chances are running out for Dave Gettleman.

The success of NFL teams can be traced to the work done by the head coach and the general manager. The Chiefs built a big roster last season and Andy Reid took it from there while Patrick Mahomes absorbed most of the attention. That is true teamwork. The Patriots have done it seemingly forever with Bill Belichick, the best coach of all time, running both departments with remarkable efficiency.

You need a top quarterback, of course. But in a league driven by the salary cap and, increasingly, by analytics, you need your most visible decision-makers consistently putting up high batting averages. Personnel mistakes can represent long-term setbacks. Technology has left a bottomless pit of information while breeding a unique class of coaches and GMs who can regularly turn data into win-column digits.

The Giants haven’t been very good at either the coach or GM positions for a long time now. Jerry Reese was hopelessly lost his final few years as general manager. So was Tom Coughlin as head coach, though some of his media apologists think he should still be bunking in the Quest Diagnostics Training Center. Ben McAdoo got the Giants their one playoff berth since 2011 but had the people skills of a Gatorade jug.

This story is from the August 2020 edition of The Giant Insider.

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This story is from the August 2020 edition of The Giant Insider.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

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