Ben McApoo, Ben McAdoodoo, Ben McAwhy?! I think that’s my favorite one, because during every New York Giants game last year, I screamed “WHY” after McAcrap ran the ball on third and seven.
No more my fellow brethren, the Giants have turned over a new leaf, and head coach Pat Shurmur is bringing a revolution to New York with every passing day.
But what makes the two coaches so different? And what’s the main aspect about Shurmur’s style that really puts him on another level?
Well, let’s consider the comparison between how the two coaches treat their players and how they go about developing them. McAdoo took the approach of, they will not get any good or bad media feedback from me, and I will not take the blame for any mistakes made on the field. In term of development, the former coach would predict starters well before they earned the right and would often times make himself look like an ignorant fool.
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Shurmur on the other hand forces his players to abide by the rules and ‘prove’ that they are capable of playing at a high-level before being awarded the starting job. Let’s take rookie offensive guard Will Hernandez for example. While it was expected that Hernandez would claim the left/right guard spot right out of college, Shurmur has made it apparent that he must earn it first. Since the start of OTAs, Hernandez has alternated with Patrick Omameh and John Greco out of the guard spot, as the coaching staff begins to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of each player.
Overall, the most influential difference between the two coaches is ‘reality’. While McAdoo lived in a world where Paul Perkins was assumed the starter before proving himself beyond two meaningful games, Shurmur is establishing trust and expectations for his players. He’s living in the real world where players must prove their worth on the practice field before receiving an opportunity on game-day.
