New York Giants: Steve Spagnuolo let Ben McAdoo, New York down

By Zac Wassink | Nov 7, 2017

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - NOVEMBER 05: Jason Pierre-Paul (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) /

New York Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo can add his name to reasons for why Big Blue is a complete disaster this fall.

The index of reasons for why a New York Giants team that started summer advertised as a championship contender crashed and burned in spectacular fashion is longer than some Christmas lists. Injuries plagued the offense before the beginning of the campaign. Quarterback Eli Manning appears to be aging before our eyes. Defensive playmakers have disappeared somewhere beyond the Hudson River.

A somewhat hidden figure in the dumpster fire that is the 2017 Giants is defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. After all, journalists, local sports talk radio hosts and fans looking to vent about the state of a losing team rarely focus on any coordinator when a head coach such as McAdoo and a general manager like Jerry Reese appear to be responsible for the franchise’s sudden downfall.

Reese built a sieve-like offensive line and then didn’t address its glaring weaknesses in the first eight months of the year. Upon re-examining the past two seasons, one could argue McAdoo squandered the final years of Manning’s prime by trying to change a two-time Super Bowl MVP and turn him into a player he isn’t, and also by straying from the leadership qualities established by former coach Tom Coughlin.

Spagnuolo hasn’t really done anything, of note, compared to others within the organization. That may be the problem. When cornerback Eli Apple was benched this past October — or not benched as explained by Paul Schwartz of the New York Post — Spags was there to defend his player and pour cold water over the flames of what could’ve been a hot rumor. Granted, there were no apologist explanations when defensive backs Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Janoris Jenkins earned themselves team suspensions, and it may be time to discuss these disciplinary issues with their leader.

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McAdoo is perceived to be the man in charge of the roster, but the offensive-minded coach is no more responsible for the defense than a pup is responsible for cleaning up after it has an accident on a carpet. Spagnuolo, who worked underneath the previously mentioned Coughlin and won a championship ring on that staff, was brought back to insert familiarity and stability to a defense he would hopefully mold into one similar to that which excelled in Super Bowl XLII.

Spagnuolo and those under him clearly achieved that objective last season. The Giants won 11 games, and the team’s record would’ve been even better had offensive players other than Odell Beckham Jr. met expectations. There were few, if any, questions and doubts about this defense presented in season previews ahead of exhibition games.

The NFL is a “what have you done for me lately?” business. It’s the nature of the beast, and it’s why so many angry New York fans and customers are demanding immediate changes and don’t want to have to wait until 2018 to see the Giants begin to blow things up en route to starting anew. Spagnuolo is not only failing to produce results. He is quickly becoming part of a culture of losing that will infect the locker room if the virus isn’t eradicated.

The blowout loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday is evidence the defense has quit on Spagnuolo and McAdoo. New York was coming off a bye week and, theoretically, should’ve been rested and ready to deal with a Los Angeles offense gathering momentum with every contest. The individuals wearing Big Blue jerseys on November 5 not only seemed unprepared for action. They went through the motions and, in some cases, performed as if they were avoiding duties.

Football is a physically demanding and grueling sport. Superstar quarterbacks suffer season-ending injuries completing routine practice drills, let alone during games. It takes a special type of leadership to motivate athletes who understand they will go through on-the-field wars with no hope of playing in even a single postseason contest. There’s a reason the cliche “coaching for his job/their jobs” exists this time of year.

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The hope among viewers and fans looking for reasons to continue following a lost campaign was that at least some veterans and younger members of the squad would fight for McAdoo, Spagnuolo and others working for the organization this fall. Not only did that not happen versus the Rams. The opposite occurred. Spagnuolo’s players quit on him on Sunday, and that’s yet another reason why the Giants are facing the beginning of the end of an era.

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