Why Wink Martindale is Bullish About Giants Defensive Improvements
Last season, defensive coordinator Wink Martindale's first in charge of the New York Giants defense was a mixed bag.
Despite ranking 14th against the pass (214.0 yards per game), the Giants defense was at the bottom league-wide against the run (27th/144.2 yards per game) and overall (25th per 358.2 yards per game).
In terms of situational football, the Giant's defense fared much better. They finished fifth in third-down and red zone defense and were tied for 12th in goal-to-goal.
But those macros stats--the overall defensive ranking and the run defense--are certainly two areas that have been on the Giants' radar to fix this off-season. They attempted to fix the unit by acquiring defensive lineman Rakeem Nuñez-Roches and linebacker Bobby Okereke in free agency and drafting cornerback Deonte Banks in the first round.
These new faces look to supplement the likes of defensive linemen Dexter Lawrence and Leonard Williams, outside linebackers Kayvon Thibodeaux and Azeez Ojualri, and cornerback Adoree’ Jackson.
These new faces, mixed with those returning from last year, have Martindale feeling bullish about the defense's chance for improvement.
“It’s the second year in the system; I know the players that are coming back. I know them better than I did at this time last year, and they know me better,” Martindale said to the media. “You can visualize what the guys can do. We did that last year, and it worked out well for us, but we also know there’s a lot of improvement that we need to make because if you’re not changing in this league, you won’t be there very long.”
Martindale is entering his 19th NFL season and hasn't been shy about trying new looks. One of the new looks generating some buzz from camp has been having Jackson playing snaps in the slot while rookies Banks and Tre Hawkins have manned the outside spots.
“I can’t say enough about Joe (Schoen) and his group and Dabs (coach Brian Daboll) of what they continue to do with the roster week by week to be competitive. That’s a hard thing to do in this league.”
While Martindale is confident about the defense, in general, being improved, he was also quick to point out that the team has had only one padded practice so far and that the upcoming preseason games would help tell the story of how far this defense has come in Year 2.
“It’s going to be a process, and I’ll be able to answer those questions better after we get some preseason games and do things like that, but we’re excited,” Martindale said.
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