East Rutherford, NJ - Less than 24 hours after their 2023 season ended, New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll has made a couple of key changes to his coaching staff, both of which were widely anticipated.
At the start of his joint year-end press conference with general manager Joe Schoen, Daboll announced that offensive line coach Bobby Johnson and special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey had been dismissed.
Johnson's dismissal was expected after the Giant's offensive line not only allowed the second most sacks (85) in league history but more due to the issues in developing young talent on the unit.
Players such as tackle Evan Neal, Joshua Ezeudu, John Michael Schmitz, and Marcus McKethan were among those who struggled to make progress under Johnson's tutelage. While the number of injuries to the offensive line made things challenging, given all the different combinations, that Johnson didn't seem to have answers in getting backups ready was an issue.
After returning to the team after a prior NFL stint with the Carolina Panthers, McGaughey has been with the Giants since 2018. McGaughey replaced Tom Quinn, who was not retained by Pat Shurmur, though Quinn served as an advisor during that 2018 season while McGaughey battled health issues.
McGaughey's units have been inconsistent over the last two seasons due to mistakes and maintaining lane integrity. This year, his unit went through four different place-kickers, the Giants finishing 31st in the league in field goal conversion percentage (70.97).
In addition to Johnson and McGaughey, Daboll will be looking to replace running backs coach Jeff Nixon, who will become the offensive coordinator at Syracuse, and strength and conditioning coach Craig Fitzgerald, who takes up a similar [pst at the Univesity of Florida.
Daboll also said he expects offensive coordinator Mike Kafka and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale to return in 2024.
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