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EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Giants looked to one of their division rivals to help shore up their porous defense.
Steve Spagnuolo, the Philadelphia Eagles’ linebackers coach the past three seasons, was hired by the Giants on Monday to be their defensive coordinator.
Spagnuolo will replace Tim Lewis, who was fired this month after three seasons with the Giants.
Coach Tom Coughlin was sufficiently impressed with the 47-year-old Spagnuolo, who has never been a defensive coordinator in the NFL, that he hired him without conducting in-person interviews with any other candidates.
Clearly, Spagnuolo’s association with Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson, whose aggressive, blitzing defenses have confounded the Giants for years, made him an attractive candidate.
Spagnuolo said the chance to be a defensive coordinator trumped any thoughts of staying in Philadelphia and positioning himself to one day replace Reid.
“You aspire to be in certain positions, and coordinator was one I wanted,” he said. “I don’t think you ever say no to them.”
He will inherit a Giants defense that was beset by injuries to star players Michael Strahan and LaVar Arrington and others last season, but still underperformed.
As a unit, the Giants ranked 25th in the NFL in yardage allowed (342.4 yards) and 28th against the pass (228.1 yards). They were worst in the league when opponents got inside the 20-yard line, allowing them to score touchdowns on 30 of 46 chances in the red zone, or 65.2 percent.