Were the New York Giants determined to hire Matt Rhule as their next head coach? Was landing in East Rutherford a dream job for the Rhule? Did he provide co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch an opportunity to match the Carolina Panthers’ seven-year contract offer?
The world may never know.
During his introductory press conference on Wednesday, Rhule answered every question clearly, honestly and bluntly. That is, until it came to questions about the Giants.
Suddenly becoming very careful with his words, Rhule did not elaborate much on his dealings with New York, simply stating that he did not want to come across as if he were speaking ill of them and noting that his agent had been in contact.
Matt Rhule says when the Panthers went to seven years, it spoke to him about their commitment. He didn't want to get into his dealings with Giants b/c didn't want it to come across like he was talking poorly of them. Says his agent had the conversations w/ Giants.
— Joe Person (@josephperson) January 8, 2020
Matt Rhule on report he called the Giants before taking Panthers job:
"I never talked to anyone but [the Panthers]. I probably don't want to say anything that would come across in a bad way. My agent talks to everybody.
…
"Only person I talked to was Mr. Tepper."
— Will Brinson (@WillBrinson) January 8, 2020
Rhule met with the Panthers on Monday and was scheduled to meet with the Giants on Tuesday, but that never materialized. Even with a plane waiting to fly him to East Rutherford, Rhule didn’t hesitate to sign on the dotted line in Carolina, and who can blame him?
Rhule is now the sixth-highest paid head coach in the NFL despite absolutely no experience to speak of, and has more guaranteed money in his contract than all but a small handful of NFL players.
Oh yea, there was also his Baylor contract buyout on top of that.
Does Rhule signing with the Panthers cast a negative light on the Giants or did they simply let him walk because he wasn’t the favorite many projected him to be and simply cost to much? It seems like that boils down to a personal interpretation.
Whatever the case may be, Rhule now begins his career in Carolina as we anxiously await official word that the Giants have signed Joe Judge to become their next head coach.
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