Giants make several changes to coaching staff official

The New York Giants Monday made official several changes to Brian Daboll’s 2023 coaching staff. Some of these had been previously reported, but

Jeff Nixon is the team’s new running backs coach., replacing DeAndre Smith, who joined Shane Steichen on the Indianapolis Colts’ coaching staff. Nixon was the Miami Dolphins’ running backs coach in 2011 when Daboll was the team’s offensive coordinator.

Nixon, whose 25-year coaching career includes 13 in the NFL, spent the previous three seasons with the Carolina Panthers. In 2020, he was the team’s senior offensive assistant/running backs coach under coach Matt Rhule. The following year, he added the title of interim offensive coordinator after Joe Brady was fired on Dec. 5, 2021. Last season, Nixon was Carolina’s assistant head coach/offense.

Nixon went to Carolina after spending the previous three seasons on Rhule’s staff as Baylor’s co-offensive coordinator/play-caller.

Nixon’s previous NFL experience includes four seasons (2007-10) as an offensive/special teams assistant with the Philadelphia Eagles, five as the Dolphins’ running backs coach (2011-15), and the 2016 season as the San Francisco 49ers’ tight ends coach. His first coaching job was as a student assistant at Penn State, his alma mater, in 1997.

Stephen Thomas is a new assistant special teams coach. He spent the previous four seasons as the Detroit Lions’ defensive quality control coach, a position he also held with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2015.

Chris Smith has replaced Tony Sparano Jr. as the assistant offensive line coach after six seasons at Holy Cross. He was the offensive coordinator in 2022 after previously serving as the offensive line coach, run game coordinator, and recruiting coordinator. Sparano is also now with the Colts as the team’s offensive line coach.

Michael Treier received the new title of safeties coach. He joined the Giants in 2020 as a defensive quality control coach and was the assistant defensive backs coach in 2021-22. Jerome Henderson has been coaching both cornerbacks and safeties.

Christian Jones, who spent the 2022 season as an offensive assistant, is now the Giants’ assistant quarterbacks coach.

Angela Baker, the Giants’ inaugural recipient of the Rosie Brown Minority Coaching Fellowship, last season served as an offensive quality control coach. She is now an offensive assistant. Baker spent much of last season assistant Andy Bischoff in working with the tight ends.

Christian Daboll is an offensive assistant. He was a student coach the past four seasons, one at the University of Alabama and the past three at Penn State.

Critically, the Giants kept offensive coordinator Mike Kafka and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale for second seasons. Kafka interviewed for four head coaching jobs during this hiring cycle. Martindale interviewed twice with the Colts.