New York Giants safety Xavier McKinney has been part of some bad teams early in his NFL career. He felt like under Joe Judge, there was no consistent direction among the staff and players were being led down conflicting paths.
All of that changed under head coach Brian Daboll this past season. There’s been a consistent approach since Day 1 and players want to be in the building. They also feel heard for the first time in years.
That change and the culture shift led to the team’s first playoff win since Super Bowl XLVI. But the magical run ended with a drubbing at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round.
That loss was humbling, McKinney said. But the future remains bright and the Giants are “building something special.”
“I think we’re going to compete to win the division every year,” McKinney said on The Pivot. “I think we’re going to have the team to do it. We’re building something special and I think we’re going to be a hard team to beat every year.
“Everything is set in place. We just need a couple more pieces and we’re going to be rolling.”
Much of the credit is owed to Daboll, who reenergized the entire organization in the blink of an eye.
“When Joe Judge came in, we were used to cussing every five seconds. Dabes wasn’t like that,” McKinney said. “When he came in, the goal was clear and he wasn’t trying to be an (expletive) or do anything that was funny acting. He wanted to win games and he told us that from the jump.
“We were already ready to change the narrative so at that point, we didn’t really care who came in. We had already built that mindset of, ‘we’re about to change this and we don’t care what coaches come in the building. We’ve got to change this (expletive) now.'”
McKinney added that Daboll and his staff earned the trust of the players quickly and that it was “smooth sailing” after that.
“I think he should be Coach of the Year because he turned the organization around super fast,” McKinney said. “Last year we were at rock bottom. For him to be able to turn things around in a matter of one year, I think it’s just crazy.”
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