The Pat Shurmur era is fortunately over for the New York Giants, but one name that Giants fans probably remember is getting a new job in the NFC West. James Bettcher was, of course, defensive coordinator in the Shurmur era. Few fans had strong opinions about him when he was brought in, and most were waiting to see how he would do before making strong judgements.
Bettcher, obviously, didn’t do well enough – few areas of the team did under Shurmur. He was fired when the Giants cleaned house to make room for the current staff that was largely picked by Joe Judge.
Now, he’s getting a job as a senior defensive assistant with the 49ers.
Former Giants DC James Bettcher is joining the 49ers as a senior defensive assistant, per sources. (@RapSheet first). Had other options up to the end, including Bears. Chose San Francisco to work w/up-and-coming DC DeMeco Ryans and with Kyle Shanahan. Stability in SF a key.
— Jordan Raanan (@JordanRaanan) January 23, 2021
He’s not the only one in that former administration to get a job elsewhere after the Giants cleaned house. Pat Shurmur himself is back in the league, too, but had to drop back down to offensive coordinator when moving to the Broncos.
The Giants moved on from Bettcher by acquiring Patrick Graham, who so far has been far more successful than other Giants defensive coordinators over the last few years. Unlike the others, Giants fans were actually hoping that Graham would stay, and one of the team’s first offseason moves was securing a contract extension for him.
Generally, the Giants have been better coached all around as of recent. And we can see that clearly here, with the current defensive coordinator getting a new contract while the former one moves into a defensive assistant position.