Buccaneers hire Giants QB Coach as OC

[Al Bundy]

NFLSTROUD Rick Stroud
Bucs confirm the hiring of Giants QBs coach Mike Sullivan as offensive coordinator.

Dylan, what do you know about him?

[O.city]

Good hire.


wanted him in KC.

[BossChief]

We don't need him, we needed a guy from NE.

Duh

[Pasta Little Brioni]

I'm suuuure coaching Eli Manning is a tough job

[pr_capone]

Originally Posted by O.city

Good hire.


wanted him in KC.

I wanted him here as well.

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Originally Posted by BossChief

We don't need him, we needed a guy from NE.

Duh

25 points a game with Matt friggin Moore at QB the last 9 games...just sayin. Don't really give a fug where he came from if they hit that next year.

[Dylan]

Originally Posted by UCF Knight

NFLSTROUD Rick Stroud
Bucs confirm the hiring of Giants QBs coach Mike Sullivan as offensive coordinator.

Dylan, what do you know about him?

What do I know about Mike Sullivan? Everything. Good luck Sully and thanks for your help in the Giants' two Super Bowl wins! What a loss ...

Sullivan has been in the Giants' offensive system for the past eight years. Sully (his nickname with the Giants) was at first the Giants' wide receivers coach from 2004-2009. He coached Ike Hilliard, Amani Toomer, Plaxico Burress, Sinorice Moss. He did a great job in 2008 teaching a group of young receivers to take over for Amani Toomer and Plaxico Burress who was not resigned.

Sullivan spent six years reshaping the team's group of young receivers - He was instrumental in the development of Steve Smith, Mario Manningham, Domenik Hixon, Hakeem Nicks and David Tyree.

In 2009, Sullivan’s group of wide receivers caught 236 passes. Steve Smith shattered the franchise record with 107 catches and was the first Giants wideout to play in the Pro Bowl in 41 years. Smith’s receptions accounted for 1,220 yards and seven touchdowns. Mario Manningham contributed 57 catches and Hakeem Nicks had 47 and six scores in an exceptional rookie season.

In 2008, Smith led the Giants with 57 receptions. Domenik Hixon, who had one career reception entering the season, had a team-high 596 receiving yards on 43 catches. Amani Toomer was second on the team with 48 receptions in his final Giants season. Toomer holds the franchise career records for catches (668), receiving yards (9,497), touchdown catches (54) and 100-yard games (22). In four seasons under Sullivan’s tutelage, Plaxico Burress had 344 catches, which place him 12th on the franchise’s career list, one catch ahead of Earnest Gray and three behind Aaron Thomas. Burress had 3,681 receiving yards and caught 33 touchdown passes for the Giants.

Burress caught 10 touchdown passes in 2006 and 12 the following year to become the first Giant since Del Shofner in 1961-62 to post back-to-back seasons with 10 or more scoring catches. He set a Giants postseason record with 11 receptions in the NFC Championship Game in Green Bay, one more than Ike Hilliard had in the 2000 Championship Game victory over Minnesota.

David Tyree, another of Sullivan’s players, made one of the greatest plays in Super Bowl history when he improbably secured an Eli Manning pass against his helmet for a 32-yard gain on the Giants’ game-winning drive in Super Bowl XLII.

Sullivan one of Coughlin's original hires, became the Giants new quarterback coach, replacing Chris Palmer in 2010.

Coughlin said the continuity in the offense Sullivan will provide was a reason he decided to stay within the staff.

"He has a very good understanding of our passing game," Coughlin said. "He did the majority of the work in assembling our first-and-second-down pass game. He is an industrious, very hardworking, very intelligent coach who looks forward to each challenge."

Sullivan brings an excellent track record in preparation and education.

Read my next post. Great research, in a story by Mike Garafolo from the Star-Ledger (my favorite Giants sports journalist). He quoted backup QB David Carr talking about a drill Sullivan has Manning do. It involves the Giants' quarterbacks to move around a bit and make a throw.

[Dylan]

In-depth research of Eli Manning and his mentor, Mike Sullivan - Great read:

Eli Manning, Giants quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan turn the corner together

Published: Sunday, January 08, 2012, 9:15 AM
By Mike Garafolo / The Star Ledger

This time last year, after a disappointing, playoff-less season in which the Giants once again faded down the stretch, Eli Manning and Mike Sullivan had a meeting to, as Sullivan put it, “kind of vent and air out our frustrations and feelings.”

In Sullivan’s first year as quarterbacks coach, Manning threw 25 interceptions that led many to assert he was regressing.

“The biggest thing that jumped out at both of us, because I know he didn’t like it and I sure didn’t like it and it didn’t make either one of us feel good, was with the interceptions,” Sullivan said the other day. “ ‘He’s taken a step (backward). The fundamentals have dropped off. What’s happened? And who’s this guy coaching him?’ ”

This guy was a former defensive player and coach that Tom Coughlin converted to a wide receivers coach in 2004. And after Chris Palmer left the organization, Coughlin put Sullivan in charge of the quarterbacks, leading to some finger-pointing when Manning had what appeared to be a down year.

Now, heading into today’s NFC wild-card playoff game against the Atlanta Falcons following a regular season in which Manning set a franchise record with 4,933 yards, established a career high with 8.4 yards per attempt, threw nine fewer interceptions in 50 more attempts and led five fourth-quarter comebacks, no one seems to be talking about Sullivan.

Which means the goals of last January’s meeting — identified by Manning and Sullivan as improving “leadership, decision-making and accuracy” — have been achieved.

“I think Mike has done a terrific job, I really do,” offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride said. “He’s learning on the job but he’s a bright guy, a well-spoken guy and a hard worker, so he goes out and finds those things that help give examples to Eli, so the stimulus has been good.

“I don’t know if he’s gotten any credit but he deserves credit because he’s certainly been a catalyst in the good year Eli’s had.”

• • •

Last month, when Fresno State fired football coach Pat Hill after 15 seasons, former Bulldogs standout David Carr called athletic director Thomas Boeh to throw Sullivan’s name into the running.

“This is the guy,” the Giants’ backup quarterback told Boeh, adding that Sullivan is the best coach he’s ever been around in terms of preparation.
Carr hadn’t spoken to Sullivan about the job and didn’t even know if he’d be interested, but knew he could ably fill that role. Though Sullivan didn’t pursue the opportunity, Carr’s confidence in him resonated.

“I’m very humble and appreciative,” Sullivan said. “We’re in the grind, but you always, in the back of your mind, hope people respect you and appreciate what you do.”

Sullivan surely needed some positive reinforcement after last season.

Though he had Coughlin’s staunch endorsement and Manning never questioned his ability to handle the job, it wasn’t an easy transition from working with the players on the end of a pass to dealing with the guy delivering it.

In fact, in a postseason article on the team’s website, Manning was quoted as saying he has to get Sullivan “thinking like a quarterback, not a receiver.” He clarified by saying the quarterback and his coach have to consider routes, blitzes, protections, the running game and everything that goes into a play, not just one aspect of it.

“It’s definitely a transition,” Manning said last week. “He’s talked about it but now he’s all in and he understands it — what goes on, what kind of decisions we have to make. Whether you’re making checks or doing things, you want to think, ‘Hey, this is what we’re doing, let’s go do it.’ You don’t want indecision or options.”

Nor does Manning want to hear a Monday-morning quarterback telling him what he should’ve done while watching film the day after games. By all accounts, Sullivan helps correct mistakes while not setting the bar unrealistically high.
“It’s better a good plan now than a perfect plan later,” Carr said. “That’s his motto.”

Improved decision-making. That was one of those goals to come from last January’s meeting, all of which are written at the three points of a triangle used by the Gracie family, the famed Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu clan admired by Sullivan, a former Army Ranger, Jiu-Jitsu blue belt and mixed-martial-arts fanatic.

“It’s on our quarterback guide, it’s something we constantly talk about,” Sullivan said. “Everything else, it has to fit within that framework. If he’s grading out and getting an ‘A’ (in the three goals), we’re going to win.”
Especially now that the teacher has a better grasp of the grading system.
• • •

There will be plenty of quarterbacks coaches in MetLife Stadium today. Except only one of them actually holds that title for the Giants.

“Eighty-one thousand people can see, ‘Boy, that’s a good-looking pass,’ and then see some of the reasons why,” Sullivan said. “It’s just a matter of seeing it faster than them.”

Such was the challenge Sullivan faced in changing jobs last year. Though he had the input of Coughlin and Gilbride, as well as Manning, who does a good job of self-critiquing, Sullivan had to learn to identify and quickly correct a fluttering or inaccurate throw.

Did Manning take a bad step? Is he “locking” his hip? Did his arm angle fall off?
Though nine of Manning’s interceptions last season glanced off his receivers’ hands and Manning set a career-high with a 62.9-percent completion rate, he and Sullivan realized one of the points on the Gracie goal triangle had to be “accuracy.”

“Look, there ain’t anybody in the NFL that’s not going to throw an interception. It’s going to happen,” Sullivan said he told Manning. “But if it happens, that son-of-a-gun’s gotta earn it. It’s gonna have to be a heckuva play.”

Better mechanics are what Sullivan has stressed. And, on his part, better understanding of those machinations.

“He’s always been good at that,” Manning said, “(but) another year under someone’s belt doing something, you’re always going to be more comfortable and have a better idea.”

Those who watched Manning all season have noticed how accurate he’s been while sliding in the pocket or rolling to either side. In the first victory over the Cowboys, he threw a 24-yard strike to Hakeem Nicks near the sideline while escaping two rushers. Last week against Dallas, he rolled to his right and hit Devin Thomas with a perfect pass to the sideline.

For those throws, and plenty others, Manning can thank Sullivan’s lack of experience in working with quarterbacks.

Seriously.

“I won’t say his drills are unconventional but, not being a quarterbacks coach before, he has some different drills where it’s uncomfortable movements,” Carr said. “You’re not just dropping back, moving to the left and right, stepping up and throwing the ball, which never happens in the game.

“You move up, you sprint out, run away from someone and then try to throw off-balance. We do that drill every Wednesday and something every Thursday and Friday that’s similar to that, where we move around and twirl.

“We always move around. It seems to make something happen.”

Just like leaders do
.
There’s the final point to that triangle: leadership.

Many often questioned Manning’s ability in that department when he was younger. He’s not fiery or talkative, so few understood how he leads. They soon learned he does it with practical jokes and an easy-going attitude that keeps his teammates’ minds at ease.

It’s fitting, then, how Sullivan gets Manning and Carr to relax after a week of grueling mental preparation: the top 3 lists. Not the same type of list they drew up last January. These are about personal preference, such as favorite Westerns, comedies, “Saturday Night Live” stars or places they want to visit before they die.

“A Saturday morning tradition,” Sullivan said. “Some of Eli’s are normally directed around Adam Sandler movies.”

The whole thing lasts about 2 minutes. But by all accounts, it’s as important as the days leading up to it.

“You have to keep things loose and have something to think about besides football,” Manning said. “Of the 10 hours of meetings we do each week or whatever it may be, we have a good minute-and-a-half of non-football talk. It works out all right.”

As has Sullivan, despite the early returns from those on the outside. The man Carr knew as little more than “the guy I’d hang out with on the bus and talking to between practices” when Carr re-signed with the team this past summer has proven to be a pretty darn good quarterbacks coach after all.

Thanks in part to that sit-down a year ago.

“I don’t recall exactly everything that was said but that meeting was good, just to get some thoughts, things in my head I wanted to get changed or fixed,” Manning said. “Coach Sully always likes to hear our thoughts. We have a good relationship, we work well together and we see things the same way.

“He does exactly what you want from a quarterbacks coach.”

[bevischief]

Wrong tree...

[Fritz88]

Looks like the Bucs coach knows what he's doing.

[Al Bundy]

Thanks for the info Dylan. I posted that article on a Bucs message board. The more I hear about Sullivan the more I like him. The Bucs needed some professionalism in the building, looks like they are getting it.

[Coogs]

While all that stuff in posts #7 and #8 sounds nice, we all know the real key to success. It all about parking the car and picking up candy wrappers.