The writing was on the wall moments after the Giants were trounced 30-10 by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night. Less than 24 hours, they made it official: Jason Garrett is out as offensive coordinator.
The former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys lasted just one-plus seasons with the Giants, overseeing an offense that had been one of the worst in football during his tenure. New York’s scoring offense ranked 31st last season and currently ranks 25th in 2021.
Garrett and his inability to get anything out of an offense that was as close to full strength as it’s been since a Week 4 upset victory over the New Orleans Saints cropped up quickly after the Giants mustered just 10 points against a Buccaneers defense that had yielded 65 in their previous two games.
It was a season-low and the fifth time in 10 games that they were held to fewer than 20 points. They gained a measly 215 yards — another season-worst — of total offense with the lone touchdown coming off a gift of an interception that gave New York prime field position in the Buccaneers’ red zone.
And even that touchdown was a trick play to left tackle Andrew Thomas.
“We’ve got to do a better job of scoring points,” Judge said. “I know that sounds pretty obvious and to the point, but I want to keep it blunt right there. We’ve got to do a better job of putting our players in a position to make plays. We have good players.
“We have to put them in a better position to capitalize on it. We’ve got to make sure we sit down tomorrow as a coaching staff to understand how we have to play this game to give our players a chance to make plays.
“As a player, there’s some things I’d be frustrated with as well.”
Running back Saquon Barkley, back from an ankle injury that held him out five weeks, touched the ball just 12 times (six rushes, six receptions). Perceived No. 1 wide receiver Kenny Golladay, who signed a four-year, $72 million contract this offseason, was targeted just twice, making one catch for 12 yards.
“It wasn’t enough,” Judge said of the looks toward Golladay.
With a plethora of weapons for third-year quarterback Daniel Jones, Garrett didn’t seem all too interested in utilizing them — or showing any sort of aggression.
The Giants are the only team in the NFL that hasn’t scored 30 points in a game this year thanks to a red-zone offense that is the ranked dead-last in the league — they’ve scored just 12 touchdowns on 27 trips inside their opponent’s 20-yard-line (44.4%).
“I expect us to produce at a higher level, let’s leave at that,” Judge, who contributes to the offensive gameplan but left the play-calling to Garrett, said. “My expectations are pretty high. I’m not compromising for anyone.”
“I’m going to watch the tape and evaluate everyone,” Judge said. “Every player, every coach, and make all the decisions that are best for the team going forward. So simply, everything is accounted for, everything is evaluated and everything will be evaluated going forward.”
