The New York Giants received universal praise around the league following the hiring of head coach John Harbaugh. However, the veteran NFL coach now needs to fill out a new Giants coaching staff, and one hire in particular could come out of left field.
On Saturday, Pro Football Talk‘s Mike Florio suggested that ESPN personality Rex Ryan could become the new Giants defensive coordinator. The NFL reporter pointed to recent comments made by Harbaugh and the fact that Ryan’s defenses that were known for creating chaos could still work in today’s game.
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In a slight defense of Florio, the new Giants head coach did tell WFAN that he might be open to hiring Ryan. After all, Ryan used to work on Harbaugh’s coaching staff with the Baltimore Ravens and there have been reports that ESPN’s NFL analyst wants to get back into coaching.
“Why not? Could you imagine Rex coming back in here? I’m not ruling anything out. A guy like Rex, he’s around the game, he knows the game. He’s going to have to get updated a little bit with some of the scheme stuff, but I’ll tell you, no one calls a better game than Rex Ryan.”
New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh on potentially hiring Rex Ryan (H/T Front Office Sports)
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Furthermore, after Harbaugh was hired, Gary Myers wrote on X not to discount Ryan being considered as an option to become the next Giants defensive coordinator. After all, they have worked together across multiple stops in their respective coaching careers.
However, Ryan has not coached in an NFL game since Dec. 24, 2016, when he was the Buffalo Bills head coach. In 2016, Buffalo ranked 22nd in yards per play (5.6) and scoring rate (38.8% allowed), while surrendering the 12th-highest third-down conversion rate (40%) and the 11th-most points per drive.
It is also worth remembering just how long ago the 2016 NFL season was. When Ryan was last coaching at the highest level, Matt Ryan won NFL MVP, Dak Prescott was Offensive Rookie of the Year, Larry Fitzgerald led the league in receptions, and Von Miller was only 27 years old.
The game has changed dramatically in a decade, and Ryan has not spent any of that time drawing up game plans nor making halftime or in-season adjustments. At a time when fresh ideas are what have sparked some of the best defenses in the league, hiring a 63-year-old defensive coordinator who has spent the last 10 years kicking his feet up and watching the games at home or with his ESPN colleagues is a recipe for disaster.
