New York Giants: Pat Shurmur May Yet Salvage Eli Manning
By Erik Lambert
The New York Giants took a considerable leap of faith when they tagged Pat Shurmur as their next head coach given his background.
He doesn’t have the most glowing reputation at this job. He went 9-23 during his two forgettable years with the Cleveland Browns before managing a 1-0 mark as an interim in Philadelphia. The team he beat during that brief revival? The Giants. The Eagles hung 35 points on them that days with Sam Bradford throwing for 320 yards. It was a display New York clearly hasn’t forgotten. Never mind the outstanding work Shurmur has done as Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator since then.
It’s clear GM Dave Gettleman is taking a calculated gamble that what happened in Cleveland was less about the coach and more about the organization. Time since then proves he may be onto something. Cleveland is a hot mess. Shurmur continues to excel. Under more beneficial conditions and with more experience? One thing is for sure. If the Giants were looking for somebody who can squeeze one last run from Eli Manning, it’s him.
Shurmur is a maestro when it comes to maximizing his QBs
If nothing else history shows that Shurmur has established himself as one of the premier quarterback specialists in the NFL. His work with Case Keenum, a former career backup, in 2017 alone is something to write a book about. Before this season Keenum barely completed 60% of his passes or had a quarterback rating above 45. In his lone year with Shurmur he threw 22 touchdowns to just seven interceptions, completed 67.8% of his passes and posted a quarterback rating of 98.3.
It doesn’t end there though. People continue to praise Doug Pederson for his work with Nick Foles in reaching the Super Bowl. Truth be told Shurmur got there first. In 2013 he got Foles to throw 27 touchdowns to just two interceptions in 10 games as a starter. He even got Sam Bradford to make it through 16 games in 2010 as a rookie.
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Shurmur was brought in to help usher in the next franchise quarterback for New York. Somebody that will certainly be drafted #2 overall in April. At the same time, there is a hope he can do something with Eli Manning. The 37-year old has steadily regressed over the past two years since Ben McAdoo became the head coach. Most think it’s age catching up with him. Gettleman though thinks there’s still something left to salvage. Shurmur might be the one man who can prove him right.