Tom Coughlin hasn’t coached a game for the Giants in nearly a decade, but his fingerprints are still all over the franchise - and now, they’re on its newest head coaching hire.
Coughlin, the architect behind the Giants’ last two Super Bowl championships, played a quiet yet pivotal role in bringing John Harbaugh to New York. And it all started with a simple message.
Shortly after Harbaugh was let go by the Ravens, Coughlin reached out. Harbaugh responded with a short note of thanks - and a request that hinted at something more.
“At the bottom of his little paragraph, he said, ‘And by the way, if you have a minute, I could use some advice,’” Coughlin recalled in a video shared on social media.
That one line opened the door to a series of conversations that started casual but quickly became more focused. What began as a friendly check-in turned into a deeper dive into the inner workings of the Giants organization.
According to Coughlin, the early talks were about what he called “tertiary stuff” - the kind of behind-the-scenes intel you don’t get from a press release. Things like how the Giants are structured at the ownership level, and how the Mara and Tisch families operate. These aren’t just names on a letterhead - they’re key players in how the franchise runs, and Harbaugh wanted to understand the landscape.
From there, the conversations evolved. Harbaugh started asking about the day-to-day operations inside the building: who’s in charge of what, how the chain of command flows, who’s still on staff, and how the front office collaborates. It wasn’t a job interview, but it was clear Harbaugh was doing his homework.
Coughlin made it clear that these weren’t formal meetings or part of any official process. They were conversations between two longtime football minds, rooted in mutual respect and a shared connection to the league.
“Basically, what happened was, just as if any friend or anyone would call me and ask me about the New York Giants, that’s where the conversations began,” Coughlin said.
But as the calls continued, it became obvious that Harbaugh wasn’t just catching up. He was gathering information - with intent.
Coughlin described it as “an investigation, if you will, of the New York Giants franchise.” And that’s exactly what it was: a veteran coach doing his due diligence, tapping into one of the most respected voices in Giants history to get a feel for the job, the people, and the culture.
Now, with Harbaugh officially in place, it’s clear those conversations mattered. The Giants didn’t just land a big-name coach - they brought in a leader who took the time to understand the DNA of the franchise before ever stepping foot in the building. And they had a two-time Super Bowl champion helping guide that process from behind the scenes.
Coughlin may not be calling plays anymore, but when it comes to shaping the future of the Giants, he’s still making winning moves.