Giants Reveal Major Change to Daboll Staff

According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, New York will hire New York Jets safeties coach Marquand Manuel to be the defensive backs coach.

He’ll be filling the shoes of well-respected defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson, who was fired after the 2024 season. Safeties coach Michael Treier was also relieved of his duties.

Manuel, a former safety, has an extensive coaching resume. He was a defensive assistant on the Seattle Seahawks “Legion of Boom” teams before being promoted to the Atlanta Falcons defensive backs coach with Dan Quinn in 2015. He took the step to defensive coordinator in 2017 – a spot which he held for two seasons.

Manuel was also the Philadelphia Eagles defensive backs coach in 2020 before being hired by former Jets head coach Robert Saleh to preside over the safeties for four seasons.

High on his list of priorities will be fostering the development of cornerback Deonte Banks. New York’s first-round pick in 2023, Banks has had a troublesome two seasons complete with lapses in effort and poor play in the red zone. He may not blossom into the No. 1 corner he was drafted to be, but the Giants need him to be a functional starter.

New York also recorded just five interceptions in 2024. Finding ball production from second-year players like Dru Phillips and Tyler Nubin – the latter who thrived as a pick artist at Minnesota – will be imperative in helping turn the secondary around.

Manuel’s work is cut out for him, but with a strong resume and ample talent to work with, there’s reason to be optimistic about the hire.