Giants promote OC Ben McAdoo to head coach, Coughlin backs out of Philly deal

NY Daily News - It started with Ben McAdoo. And it ends with Ben McAdoo.

The next Giants head coach will be the coach that they interviewed first - and the one they just may have had to keep away from the Philadelphia Eagles.According to multiple team and league sources, offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo is on the verge of being named head coach, and the team could make an announcement as early as Thursday.

It was a move the Giants had to make swiftly, after spending more than a week engaging in a search that was as “extensive” as co-owner John Mara had promised. All along, sources indicated that McAdoo, 38, was a favorite, and he interviewed just hours after Tom Coughlin was gently nudged aside last Tuesday. But the Giants still interviewed six total candidates and had designs on speaking with a seventh in Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson, who chose to sign with the Cleveland Browns.

But by Wednesday night, the Giants may have felt they could delay things no longer if they wanted McAdoo, because of the team down the Turnpike. The Eagles, who interviewed McAdoo late last week, had growing interest in the offensive coordinator for their own coaching vacancy, and according to sources, they were very impressed. There were even reports that the Eagles were on the verge of hiring McAdoo, though it wasn’t immediately clear if that was the case.

So the Giants made their move for the coaching option who impressed them the most from the very start - and the only candidate who came with a strong endorsement from quarterback Eli Manning.

So there you have it, just about a week after Coughlin handed in the Gmen bump Ben McAdoo to HC. With this move done, the team confirmed that former Dolphins coach Joe Philbin will be the new offensive coordinator. 

The fact of the matter is that this years coaching pool was weak, and the Giants didn't exactly have a plethora of good options. Personally, I believe McAdoo is a better move than signing a guy like Mike Smith. McAdoo knows the system and they can basically pick up right where Coughlin left off. Eli Manning's TD-INT the past two seasons with McAdoo as the offensive coordinator was 65-28. Definitely not too shabby. 

The Giants have a franchise QB, a stud in Odell Beckham, and were a few tough losses from being in contention. With the 10th overall pick in the draft, expect them to add a guy on the defensive side of the ball. Its been quite awhile since the Giants had a beast at linebacker and I wouldn't hate them looking to fill that void in the 1st round come draft day. Over the past few years Jerry Reese and co have done a phenomenal job with draft picks (Beckham, Flowers, JPP), so I fully trust them to make a good decision. 

Overall, I think moving McAdoo to the head coach position was the most practical for the ownership and organization. However, he will probably be on a short leash at least until the Giants can make the playoffs, a feat they haven't accomplished since the 2011 season. The team has the firepower to be a serious contender next season, and I truly hope McAdoo can lead them in that direction. 

As far as Tom Coughlin is concerned, THANK GOD he didn't take the job in Philly. For any Giant fan that was worse case scenario, but I doubt Coughlin really wanted to coach there. Hard to forecast what he'll do next, but boy do I wish he could have gotten another year. If he wins that game against Philly at the end of the year, he might have gotten another year. Time to move forward for Giants fans, doing so with Ben McAdoo.