New York Giants: How much bad luck has Joe Judge had since joining Big Blue?

New York Giants, Joe Judge
New York Giants, Joe Judge

When the New York Giants hired Joe Judge as their new head coach, they imagined a clean transition from Pat Shurmur. The former coach was let go after two seasons of losing football, and in year two, the team saw a major decrease in production and efficiency. Injuries played a significant part, but Shurmur’s playcalling became stagnant and his in-game management was inadequate.

Judge is bringing ample experience from Alabama and New England. Having learned from Nick Saban and Bill Belichick, Judge has the tools to develop into a top-flight head coach. However, his transition to the Giants has been rocky, bumpy, and excruciatingly painful. Judges had to endure a global pandemic affecting the way he adapted to a new team, especially in New York, where the media finds anything to pick away at your confidence.

The former NE Special Team’s coordinator did give some insight into how players have been adapting to virtual meetings, per Giants.com:

I think a lot of the things we’re trying to build within the culture right now are showing up based on the circumstances that we have allotted to us and how hard the players are working. That’s really what we’re looking to build, is that culture of everyone doing whatever it takes to be successful. Right now, we’re seeing that across the board with our players. I’m very pleased in how they come every day prepared. I’m pleased with how they come every day with a lot of urgency. We’re getting great feedback and communication through the meetings with the players themselves. As far as building comradery with them, probably the best part of the day is when you can click on the Zoom and everyone has their screens unmuted and you just hear the guys talking across.

The New York Giants have been in good standing under Joe Judge so far:

Nonetheless, Judge has shown his resiliency during these times. We have not heard a single negative thing coming out of the New York camp, despite all of the players meeting virtually. The only disturbance was DeAndre Baker’s incident, which seems to be on its way to exoneration, according to his lawyer.

The pandemic force judge to evaluate NFL draft prospects on a virtual plane, which can heavily affect what players is chosen. The Giants ended up with Andrew Thomas, the fourth overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft, who seems to be a fantastic selection and person coming out of Georgia.

Judge has stated in the past that he likes to have in-person contact with prospects to gauge their personality and character. Doing it over Zoom was difficult, but he managed to secure a few great humans and players in the process.

Despite all of the setbacks, Judge and the coaching staff are now allowed to return to the Giants’ facilities and begin operating under normal circumstances for the first time since he signed on with Big Blue.