New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh made a rather puzzling move here.
John Harbaugh accepted the job as head coach of the New York Giants with the full intention of reversing the culture, and fans have trusted him to do just that.
After all, Harbaugh experienced tremendous success in 18 seasons as Baltimore Ravens coach, so more of the same is expected in the Big Apple.
But Harbaugh definitely raised some eyebrows with his first major move over the weekend, hiring Dennard Wilson to be the Giants' defensive coordinator.
Wilson had been the Tennessee Titans' defensive coordinator the last two years, but things did not exactly go well for him in Music City.
Was that because of Wilson? Or was it the personnel?
The Titans finished 21st in yards allowed and 28th in scoring defense in 2025, the latter of which was actually worse than New York.
Obviously, field position matters when it comes to surrendering points, so that statistic needs to be taken in context ... but it's not like Tennessee wasn't getting punctured pretty regularly as far as yardage was concerned, either.
Dennard Wilson. Credit: Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK.Nevertheless, Harbaugh has worked with Wilson before. Wilson was Harbaugh's defensive backs coach in 2023, and he previously spent time with the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams, New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles.
I guess the Giants just need to trust the process when it comes to Harbaugh.
The 63-year-old is not a neophyte in this field. He has a Super Bowl championship under his belt, as well as six division titles and 12 playoff appearances. He went 180-113 with the Ravens, good for a .614 winning percentage.
There is no question that Harbaugh knows what he is doing, so everyone just needs to be patient even when it looks like he may have made a questionable decision.
New York has some impressive talent on the defensive side of the ball, ranging from edge rushers Brian Burns and Abdul Carter to defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence. It remains to be seen if Big Blue will keep fellow edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux, and cornerback Cor'Dale Flott could walk via free agency.
The Giants own the fifth overall pick of the NFL Draft and could very well go defense given their needs at both defensive tackle (Lawrence needs a running mate) and at cornerback (especially if Flott departs).
We'll see if Wilson can ultimately get the most out of this New York defense, something that Shane Bowen could not do before getting canned midway through 2025.
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