What Eli Manning wants, Eli Manning gets.
It is not that simple, of course, but Manning’s success the past two seasons and his endorsement of his offensive coordinator resonated with the Giants, who Wednesday evening were hammering home a deal that will make Ben McAdoo the 18th head coach in franchise history.
An official announcement of the hiring is expected Thursday.
This is quite a meteoric rise for McAdoo, 38, who two years ago was a respected but largely unknown Packers offensive assistant coach. After Tom Coughlin resigned Jan. 4, the day after the Giants completed a 6-10 season, McAdoo emerged as a strong internal candidate to replace the two-time Super Bowl winner who recently had fallen on hard times.
The Giants are intrigued with McAdoo’s potential but wanted to get a cross-section of the available candidates with head-coaching experience. McAdoo was their first interview, but they also met with three others with more experience: their own defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, former Bills head coach Doug Marrone and former Falcons head coach Mike Smith. None of those candidates wowed the Giants, so they doubled back and kept the hiring in-house.
McAdoo also met with the Eagles and was believed to be under serious consideration. In fact, reports out of Philadelphia suggest the Eagles were prepared to offer the job to him. The Giants, sensing urgency was needed, quickly moved in to secure their top choice.
It is expected McAdoo will retain Spagnuolo as the defensive coordinator. Joe Philbin, the former Dolphins head coach, is in the mix to join McAdoo’s staff as offensive coordinator. The two worked together with the Packers.
McAdoo at the moment is the second-youngest head coach in the NFL. Adam Gase, 37, was hired Saturday by the Dolphins.
A native of Homer City, Pa., McAdoo is not an outwardly forceful presence, but he quickly gained the respect of the players on offense. With McAdoo calling the plays and installing a West Coast offense, Manning thrived the past two years. In 2015, he threw a career-high 35 touchdown passes and had a career-best passer rating of 93.6.
“Great respect for coach McAdoo and the whole offensive staff,’’ Manning said following the season. “I think we’ve done good things and I feel very comfortable, I think we work well. Last year it was tough. It was a lot going on and very new and trying to learn, but I bought into it because I trusted him.’’
Manning was devastated to see Coughlin go but strongly endorsed keeping McAdoo in the building. McAdoo has a way with quarterbacks, as Aaron Rodgers swore by him when they worked together in Green Bay.
“I think our offense certainly improved,’’ Mara last week said of McAdoo. “I think he’s proven himself to be a very good teacher, has a very good handle on our offense. I think he communicates very well. I think he shows some leadership skills. I think he has some good qualities.’’
After two years in McAdoo’s offense, no one in the Giants’ front office wanted to see the 35-year old Manning have to learn an entirely new system.
“It’s certainly a factor,’’ Mara said. “At the end of the day you have to get the right man for the job. That can’t be the overriding determination.’’
The Giants had an interview with Hue Jackson set up for Thursday, but the Browns stepped in following a second meeting with Jackson and hired him Wednesday.
In what Mara promised would be an “extensive’’ search, the Giants also interviewed Teryl Austin (Lions defensive coordinator) and Gase (Bears offensive coordinator). Gase was taken off the market when he was hired as the Dolphins’ head coach.
A McAdoo confidant during the process believed the close ties to the franchise quarterback would be a determining factor.
“When you look to the Giants and Manning, it kind of makes it a harder thing to not lean towards McAdoo,’’ the source said. “You got some-odd millions of dollars in a guy not to lean in that direction.’’