Giants in Big Trouble After Patricia Rejects Them

Matt Patricia is likely going to become the next head coach of the Detroit Lions. Furthermore, if reports are true, it looks like Josh McDaniels is heading to Indianapolis to be their head coach. While those headlines certainly are painful for New England Patriots fans, they are also painful for the New York Giants.

The Giants were in the sweepstakes for one of the New England coordinators, and last week the rumor mill was hot that Patricia was coming to New York to coach Big Blue. Instead, Patricia is taking his shaggy beard and Number Two pencil to the Motor City. It's a move that makes a lot of sense for Patricia. He is familiar with Lions GM Bob Quinn, who had worked in the Patriots front office. He will also inherit a team that won nine games last season, and has a franchise quarterback in Matt Stafford.

The Lions aren't bad, they just need a little more direction, and with the way a team like the Jacksonville Jaguars got to the AFC Title game this season, who is to say the Lions can't be that kind of team next year. That is what Patricia and the Lions are betting on.

The Giants meanwhile are left at the alter to ponder what happened. How did they lose out on a defensive coordinator, whose Patriot defense's allowed 14 points per game in the second half of the season, and shut down the Tennessee Titans on Saturday night?

Perhaps the Giants job just isn't that attractive. The questions about Eli Manning's future, coupled with a clubhouse full of bad personalities, and the pressure that comes with the second pick in the 2018 NFL Draft is not attractive, certainly not for a young coach who doesn't want to be fired after two years.

Now the Giants have to regroup and find a guy who wants to take on this challenge. Some rumors have Minnesota Vikings Offensive Coordinator Pat Shurmur as the favorite for the job. Others are saying that Shurmur and McDaniels are still candidates, but if McDaniels is truly leaning Colts, then it's Shurmur or bust for the Giants.

The question is will Shurmur take it? He's expected to be a finalist for the Arizona Cardinals job as well. Arizona doesn't have the pressures that New York demands, and Shurmur comes across as low key. That may not rub off well in New York City where fans and sometimes media value personality. (Just look at the Jets). Not to mention his tenure in Cleveland as a head coach wasn't good, but then again who's tenure in Cleveland is?

Still Shurmur is considered an offensive wiz. He turned around a staggering Vikings offense last year and got some good performances out of Sam Bradford. This year he turned Case Keenum into a Pro Bowl quarterback. That is a heck of a job for a guy considered low key. As long as Shurmur lights up a locker room and gets the most out of his players, nobody will care that he acts like Todd Bowles or Bill Belichick during press conferences.

This is a really dilemma for the Giants, because they aren't used to being told 'no.' If Shurmur is not the guy, look for the Giants to double-back and try to get an interview with Eagles Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz, or settle on a previous candidate like Steve Wilks. Then again, maybe the Bill Belichick-New England Divorce will come true --- ok maybe not.