Getty The Giants are hiring ex-Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Don "Wink" Martindale to replace Patrick Graham.
After Patrick Graham bolted from the New York Giants over the weekend to become the new defensive coordinator of the Las Vegas Raiders, head coach Brian Daboll has quickly landed on a replacement just five days later.
On Tuesday, February 8, NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported that the Giants intend to hire Don “Wink” Martindale as their next defensive coordinator.
As Rapoport went onto reveal, Martindale was the Giants’ top external choice after Graham left for Las Vegas.
Martindale was the defensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens from 2018 to 2021. Although his defense struggled last season as a result of the injury bug, Martindale’s units ranked No. 1, No. 4 and No. 7 from 2018 to 2020.
Martindale, 58, is also known for running a blitz heavy defense, which means his secondary will likely be playing a significant amount of man coverage behind New York’s front seven.
Although the Giants initially hoped to retain Graham as their DC, who spent the past two seasons in this position under ex-head coach Joe Judge, they are bringing in a highly touted successor with an impressive résumé to replace him.
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Familiarity
While Martindale has not coached for the Giants in the past, he does have some familiarity with the organization.
At the conclusion of the 2019 regular season, the Giants interviewed Martindale for their head coaching vacancy. And although Martindale was a strong candidate, given the success he endured in Baltimore, the job ultimately went to Judge.
Now, Martindale is expected to accept this role with the Giants, after the Ravens shockingly fired him at the end of last season.
Martindale will become the latest example of the Giants’ new direction of targeting external hires to join their front office and coaching staff. The Giants have produced just two winning seasons and one playoff berth since capturing Super Bowl XLVI. Now, they’ve brought in a number of executives and coaches from winning organizations such as the Bills, Chiefs, Eagles and Ravens in order to help turn the ship around.
Background
Upon graduating from Defiance College, Martindale worked for his family’s trucking company, hauling parts from Dayton, Ohio to Detroit, Michigan.
But it did not take long for Martindale to realize that he wasn’t meant for the trucking life. This led him to begin his coaching career shortly thereafter as the defensive coordinator for his alma mater in 1986.
After spending almost 20 years at the college level, Martindale broke into the NFL in 2004 as the Raiders’ linebackers coach.
From there, Martindale went onto join the Denver Broncos in the same role in 2009, before getting promoted to defensive coordinator prior to the following season. But after Josh McDaniels was let go near the end of the 2010 campaign, Martindale was not retained as DC.
Martindale then found a home with the Ravens in 2012 as their linebackers coach. The Ravens won the Super Bowl during Martindale’s first season on staff.
Martindale spent six seasons as the Ravens’ linebackers coach until getting promoted to defensive coordinator prior to the 2018 season.