New York Giants head coach Joe Judge escaped Black Monday, the morning after the NFL’s regular season ends and foundering coaches are sent packing. He did not survive the Tuesday that followed.
Judge was fired by the Giants after two seasons of losses on and of the field. The former New England Patriots’ special teams coordinator never crested above .500 in New York en route to a 10-23 record. His offenses, with help from since-retired general manager Dave Gettleman, were inoffensive at best and an ever-expanding Superfund site at worst. His defenses flexed and then broke under the strain of bad field position and perpetually losing the time of possession battle.
His last weeks on the job were punctuated by several moments that showcased how untenable his position was. First there was a bizarre 11-minute rant that told a fairy tale version of his tenure only Judge could see. Then came a white flag by virtue of a third-and-9 quarterback sneak late in the second quarter of a 3-0 game against the Washington Football Team.
Former Giants are calling Joe Judge to tell him how much they wish they could be running a QB sneak on third-and-9pic.twitter.com/TqsrhwroYO
— The Big Lead (@TheBigLead) January 9, 2022
Soon after, the veterans in his locker room began deflecting questions about his future. Judge had lost them, no matter what he’d told the media. New York’s baffling decision to keep him through Monday only prolonged his employment by roughly 30 hours.
Judge reportedly relayed the news to his staff via text.
From his assistant.
I'm told Joe Judge's assistant sent a text to his coaches tonight relaying the news saying, "I'm sorry to send this text, but Joe called me and he was let go. If you are around tomorrow, be in the office at 9am and he will meet with his staff."
— IG: JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) January 11, 2022
If that’s the case, it’s second only in departing coach scumbaggery to Bobby Petrino announcing his resignation from the Atlanta Falcons via photocopied memos stuck in lockers after leaving in the middle of the night. It’s also a fitting end to depressing campaign from a coach who was promoted to too much, too soon. Judge couldn’t handle the Giants, whether that meant fights on the first full-pads practice of training camp, futile attempts to convince the world his players (and former players) loved his coaching style, or allegedly abdicating the responsibility of breaking the news to his assistant coaches they’d all need to look for new jobs.
Judge was a through-and-through disaster for New York. Keeping him would have only hamstrung the team’s general manager search and prevented it from seeing what, if anything, Daniel Jones can add to the quarterback position in 2022. Now the Giants get a fresh slate with a wide array of qualified rising coaches to take the reins.
All the next hire will have to do to earn a third year with the team is be better than Judge, Pat Shurmur, or Ben McAdoo. If the bar were any lower, we’d have to break out the shovels to find it.
That’s Giants football, baby.