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Giants Now: Pro Football Focus high on Giants' coaching staff

BRIAN-DABOLL-GN

Pro Football Focus high on Giants coaching staff

It would be difficult to consider Brian Daboll's first season as head coach of the Giants as anything short of a success.

Daboll helped turn the franchise around as he led the Giants to a 9-7-1 record, their first postseason appearance since 2016 and their first playoff win since Super Bowl XLVI. He was awarded by the Associated Press as they named him the NFL Coach of the Year.

Pro Football Focus' Trevor Sikkema recently released his ranking of the top 10 head coaches in the NFL, where Daboll, with just one year of head coaching experience under his belt, came in at No. 10.

"Many coaches could be in contention for this final spot in the top 10, but Brian Daboll gets the nod because of an immensely impressive first year as the Giants' head coach in 2022," Sikkema wrote. "New York's overall offensive expected points added per play jumped from -0.169 to 0.015 from 2021 to 2022. The team's EPA per pass went from -0.197 to 0.026, and its EPA per rush went from -0.079 to 0.095. And this was all with mostly the same players from one year to the next. The difference was Daboll, and he has an even more talented team heading into 2023. He is a head coach who can raise both the floor and ceiling of a roster no matter where it is in its rebuild or winning window. Those are characteristics of a great head coach."

Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka helped transform the offense with many of the same players as the year before. Under Daboll and Kafka, the unit scored a touchdown on 63.3 percent of its trips inside the red zone, the seventh-best mark in the NFL.

Additionally, the Giants run game finished top five in yards, yards per attempt and touchdowns, while the offense's 16 total turnovers were the second-fewest in the league. Daniel Jones' 1.1 interception percentage not only led the NFL in 2022, but also set a new franchise record.

Here is Sikkema's full ranking of the top 10 head coaches:

  1. Andy Reid, Kansas City Chiefs
  2. Bill Belichick, New England Patriots
  3. Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers
  4. Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco 49ers
  5. John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens
  6. Sean McVay, Los Angeles Rams
  7. Doug Pederson, Jacksonville Jaguars
  8. Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia Eagles
  9. Sean McDermott, Buffalo Bills
  10. Brian Daboll, New York Giants

View photos of head coach Brian Daboll's time with the New York Giants.

Daboll was not the only Giants coach recognized by the analytics site.

Wink Martindale landed at No. 6 on PFF's list of the top 10 defensive coordinators in the NFL entering the 2023 season.

"Martindale may have moved from Baltimore to New York for his defensive coordinator duties, but his aggressive nature and play calling remained intact — and successful," wrote Sikkema. "No team in the NFL last year played more Cover 0 or Cover 1 (man coverage) than the Giants. Their coverage and pass-rush units were in sync, yielding 136 pressures and 24 sacks while in man coverage. At 60 years old and with 18 years of NFL experience, Martindale is still dialing it up with the best of them."

The Giants defense found plenty of success in its first season under Martindale. The unit finished the year ranked fifth in both third down conversion percentage (35.1 percent) and red zone conversion percentage (49.2 percent).

The defense also allowed 39.8 percent of their opponents' drives to end in a score, which was the eighth best mark in the league.

The team's 106 quarterback hits were tied for the eighth-most, while their 41 sacks ranked 13th.

Here is Sikkema's full ranking of the top 10 defensive coordinators:

  1. Bill Belichick/Steve Belichick, New England Patriots
  2. Lou Anarumo, Cincinnati Bengals
  3. Vic Fangio, Miami Dolphins
  4. Dan Quinn, Dallas Cowboys
  5. Steve Spagnuolo, Kansas City Chiefs
  6. Wink Martindale, New York Giants
  7. Raheem Morris, Los Angeles Rams
  8. Brian Flores, Minnesota Vikings
  9. Ejiro Evero, Carolina Panthers
  10. Steve Wilks, San Francisco 49ers

View photos of defensive coordinator Wink Martindale's first season with the Giants.

Take a look at rare photos of New York Giants training camps through the years.

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