Giants fire coach Joe Judge after only 2 seasons at the helm
The New York Giants fired head coach Joe Judge on Tuesday after only two seasons at the helm.
Judge's career record of 10-23 (.303 win percentage) is the second-worst in the franchise's modern history for any Giants coach with at least one full season at the helm — just ahead of the man Judge replaced, Pat Shurmur, who went 9-23 over his two seasons.
"Steve (Tisch) and I both believe it is in the best interest of our franchise to move in another direction," team president John Mara said via a Giants statement. "We met with Joe yesterday afternoon to discuss the state of the team. I met again with Joe this afternoon, and it was during that conversation I informed Joe of our decision. We appreciate Joe's efforts on behalf of the organization.
"I said before the season started that I wanted to feel good about the direction we were headed when we played our last game of the season. Unfortunately, I cannot make that statement, which is why we have made this decision.
Judge lost his first five games in 2020, and seven of his first eight, before leading the Giants to four straight victories. They were even briefly in contention for a division title in the lowly NFC East that season prior to three straight losses in Weeks 14 through 16.
The 2021 season saw Judge's Giants also get off to a slow start, opening with a 1-5 mark. There was some promise in them winning two of their next three games, as well as nearly beating the Chiefs in a Monday night game at Arrowhead.
But Judge fired offensive coordinator Jason Garrett following the Week 11 loss at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — and somehow the Giants' offense got worse down the stretch. They scored only 69 points during a 1-6 stretch from Week 12 to Week 18. His playing calling during Sunday's loss to the Washington Football Team included running a quarterback sneak on third-and-9 from New York's 4-yard line, drawing pointed criticism of his decision making.
Judge, who turned 40 on New Year's Eve, had spent most of his coaching career on the staffs of Nick Saban at Alabama and Bill Belichick with the New England Patriots. But he was unable to transfer his previous successes — winning two national titles with Saban and three Super Bowl titles with Belichick —into his first head-coaching job in New York.
The Giants will be hiring their fourth full-time head coach since they let two-time Super Bowl winner Tom Coughlin go following the 2015 season.