Giants coaching search: Add Mike McCarthy, Don Martindale

Add former Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy and current Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale to the list of candidates the New York Giants will speak to as they seek a replacement for the fired Pat Shurmur.

Mike McCarthy

Fired by the Packers 12 games into his 13th season as their head coach, McCarthy has the most impressive NFL head coaching resume of any candidate currently connected to the Giants’ job.

McCarthy has a 125-77-2 regular season record, a .618 winning percentage. His teams are 18-10 in the playoffs, and Green Bay won the 2010 Super Bowl under his direction.

He was fired with the Packers at 4-7-1, headed for a second straight losing season. McCarthy was a candidate for the New York Jets vacancy a year ago, but did not get the job and stayed out of football.

McCarthy coached both Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, and his resume makes him a seemingly solid candidate to develop Daniel Jones. Still, there were questions in his final seasons with the Packers as to whether or not his offensive approach had gone stale.

There is the fact that Ben McAdoo, who failed as Giants head coach, came from the McCarthy coaching tree. Perhaps that will give the Giants pause in going back down the Green Bay road.

Still, at least talking to McCarthy seems like a no-brainer.

Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images

Don Martindale

The Baltimore defensive coordinator is an intriguing, unexpected addition to the field.

The 56-year-old has been an NFL assistant since 2004 with the Oakland Raiders, Denver Broncos and the Ravens. He was defensive coordinator in Denver in 2010, and with the highly-rated Ravens’ defense the past two seasons.

Perhaps the most intriguing thing about Martindale is Ian Rapoport’s report that he would try to bring LSU passing game coordinator Joe Brady with him to run his offense.

Brady moved from the New Orleans Saints to LSU this season and is largely credited with turning quarterback Joe Burrow into the Heisman Trophy winner and likely No. 1 pick in the draft, as well as turning a previously pedestrian LSU offense into a high-flying unit that has the Tigers playing for a national title.

The list

Matt Rhule, Baylor head coach — Reportedly turned down a chance to interview with the Cleveland Browns.
McCarthy
Martindale
Eric Bieniemy, Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator
Kris Richard, Dallas Cowboys defensive passing game coordinator
Josh McDaniels, New England Patriots offensive coordinator