EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Joe Schoen took the stage Wednesday afternoon with a sharp navy suit, matching blue patterned tie and a New York Giants pin gleaming on his lapel. They were accompanied by a pair of fancy designer suede driving shoes and a smile befitting the achievement of becoming one of 32 NFL general managers in the world.
This scene marked the dawn of a new Giants era. One they hope is much different from the previous four years under Dave Gettleman.
Schoen had the look, feel and words of a very different general manager than the Giants have ever had.
“I believe in [analytics]. Any tool that can help us win games or give us a competitive advantage, we’re going to continue to push the envelope and find out what those are,” he said.
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Pushing the envelope wasn’t a hallmark of Gettleman’s tenure. That was more trying to catch up with the rest of the league, not just with analytics and technology, but pretty much everything — including talent.
Schoen, 42, was hired away from the Buffalo Bills, where he was the assistant GM, to reshape and restore the once-proud Giants. He even mentioned something Wednesday during a radio interview on WFAN as basic as updating the magnets they’ve used since forever in the draft room to a digital version. Simple, but likely necessary. The Giants’ decision-makers should have every tool at their fingertips like the rest of the league.
That’s just scratching the surface of what will ultimately change, and it’s part of what impressed ownership.
“His vision in how to build a team combining all the analytics and sports science and how to build a staff and different roles for each person on the staff — how he wants our scouts to act, how he wants our pro personnel department to act. … There’s a lot of thought that went behind that,” co-owner John Mara said.
“They’ve obviously had success with it in Buffalo and we need to make some changes in how we do…
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