3 former Giants ranked among top 10 defensive coordinators of all time

[MightyGiants]

8) TOM LANDRY
Although Tom Landry made his stripes as the two-time Super Bowl-winning head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, he was also an excellent defensive play-caller.

As the New York Giants' defensive coordinator from 1954-59, Landry was a true innovator. He devised the 4-3 defense, adding a middle linebacker and creating the front alignment still used in the NFL today. As Dallas' HC, Landry also invented the "Flex" defense, a gap scheme that allowed for increased flexibility.

3) STEVE SPAGNUOLO
Steve Spagnuolo, the top defensive mind in the NFL in 2024, could move up this list if the Kansas City Chiefs keep dominating the defensive side of the ball.

Patrick Mahomes is the best football player on Earth, but the Chiefs wouldn't have won their third Super Bowl in five tries without Spagnuolo coaching the club's defense.

Of course, that's not all Spagnuolo has done in the NFL. During his first stint as the New York Giants' DC (2007-08), Spags upset the previously undefeated New England Patriots, shutting down arguably the greatest offense in league history en route to a Super Bowl XLII.

He's the only NFL coordinator to win a Super Bowl with two different organizations.

1) BILL BELICHICK
He's not only arguably the best NFL coach of all time, Bill Belichick is also the top defensive coordinator in the history of the league.

Working under Bill Parcells with the Giants from 1985-90, Belichick won Super Bowls XXI and XXV as the club's DC. In Super Bowl XXV, Belichick's defense shut down Jim Kelly and the Buffalo Bills, who led the NFL in scoring in 1990 and had put up 51 points against the Raiders in the AFC title game. His game plan from the victory is now in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

After becoming the Patriots' head coach in 2000, Belichick was heavily involved with New England's defensive processes. He shut down Los Angeles Rams RB Marshall Faulk en route to an upset in Super Bowl XXXVI. The Pats also won Super Bowls after 2003 and 2004, ranking first and second in defensive scoring in those respective years.

Three more Lombardis followed in the 2010s, including after the 2018 campaign when Belichick's Patriots stifled McVay and the high-flying Rams in Super Bowl LIII. New England held Los Angeles — which ranked second in points and yards during the regular season — to a single field goal.

https://www.profootballnetwork.com/best-nfl-defensive-coordinators-of-all-time/

[President Rick]

glad to see Spags get the recognition.  His stint as a HC masked his talents.  Having talked with him in the camp Albany days, IMO he also is a fine man.  Glad he was a Giant.

[Jclayton92]

We should have hired spags and paired a Kyle Shanahan or someone like that as his OC so that spags could just focus on defense.

[DaveBrown74]

John Fox was not top 10 but he was pretty good I'd say.

[PSUBeirut]

For Spags and Bill B it also helped to have a hall-of-famer at their disposal on defense for over 30 consecutive years!!!!  1976-2007.  Carson -- LT -- Strahan.  I've never researched to see if there is any other team that can make that same claim (or longer, even), but it's gotta be up there as extremely rare, if not singular.

[T200]

Glad to see Spags get the recognition as well. Some guys are capped at coordinator and are best at that level. He's one of them.

[y_so_blu]

Those were the three guys I guessed before I opened the thread.

What do I win???   

[MightyGiants]

Those were the three guys I guessed before I opened the thread.

What do I win???   

A coveted no prize 

[kingm56]

Tom Landry was a class act; also, if I'm not mistaken, the creator of the flex defense.

[MightyGiants]

Tom Landry was a class act; also, if I'm not mistaken, the creator of the flex defense.

That is often the problem with these lists, the recency bias.   As you said, Tom Landry was a highly successful and innovative DC for the Giants (opposite Vince Lombardi as OC).