Giants stay all in the SEC family with new O-Line coach

Joe Judge is hiring a new offensive line coach with SEC ties to him and two of his key offensive assistants. Judge is in the process of hiring Rob Sale, 41, who has worked as the University of Louisiana Lafayette’s offensive coordinator and offensive line coach the past three seasons, according to sources. Sale is leaving the Ragin’ Cajuns for his first NFL job in New York.

Judge and Sale worked at Alabama together for three years when Judge was Nick Saban’s special teams assistant (2009-11) and Sale was a strength and conditioning assistant and offensive analyst (2007-11).

But Sale also was a three-year starter on Saban’s offensive line at LSU (20002002) in college, where he played both guard positions and center.

He overlapped there for one year with Giants tight ends coach Freddie Kitchens, who was an LSU grad assistant in 2000. And Sale was teammates for two seasons in 2001-02 with Giants assistant offensive line coach Ben Wilkerson.

Wilkerson, in fact, took over as starting center as a freshman in 2001 when injuries on the line forced Sale to move from center to right guard.

Sale’s first big college job was at Alabama, where he met Judge. He went on to coach for three seasons at McNeese State (201214), working as both O-line coach and co-offensive coordinator, then spent one year each at Georgia, Louisiana-Monroe and Arizona State.

He worked with Louisiana head coach Billy Napier at both Alabama (2011) and Arizona State (2017) and followed Napier to Louisiana Lafayette.

Sale was not a part of Andrew Thomas’ recruitment at Georgia on Mark Richt’s staff in 2015. So there is no pre-existing relationship there, although the Giants’ left tackle wasn’t far behind in joining the Bulldogs as a freshman in 2017.

It is not believed Sale has any history working with Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett.

Sale will be charged with steadying a critical and unstable position on Judge’s staff.

Garrett brought Marc Colombo to the Giants from his Cowboys staff, but Judge and Colombo butted heads on how to coach the line, and Judge fired Colombo for insubordination after a heated argument during the team’s Week 11 bye.

Dave DeGuglielmo, initially brought in midseason as a consultant, took over the offensive line for the remainder of the season. But DeGuglielmo curiously parted ways with the Giants after the sides couldn’t agree on a contract, and he since has been hired as Louisiana Tech’s new O-line coach.

Sale inherits a rebuilding offensive line still in need of significant upgrades in talent and consistency.

Thomas, the No. 4 overall pick in last year’s draft, is continuing to develop at left tackle. Shane Lemieux replaced Will Hernandez as the starting left guard in 2020, but neither player has demonstrated he is the answer.

Center Nick Gates, a converted tackle, had an encouraging first season at his new position and was the only Giants player to play every eligible snap at his position.

Veteran right guard Kevin Zeitler is a candidate to be a cap casualty, particularly via trade. And third-round pick Matt Peart is still developing at right tackle, where 2020 starter Cam Fleming is a free agent.

Sale recently produced two NFL prospects on his Ragin’ Cajuns offensive line: Dolphins second-round right tackle Robert Hunt and Steelers fourth-round right guard Kevin Dotson.

Sale is coming off an emotional season after his good friend, Louisiana assistant O-line coach D.J. Looney, died on Aug. 1 at age 31 of a heart attack during a team workout.

Looney played his college ball at Mississippi State, Judge’s alma mater, and was a redshirt freshman for the Bulldogs during Judge’s third and final season as a grad assistant there in 2007.

The Giants have made no official announcement yet on Sale, but they’re expected to soon.

In other news, Giants wide receivers coach Tyke Tolbert did not land the Vikings offensive coordinator job for which he interviewed last Wednesday. So Tolbert, another LSU product, will stay on Judge’s staff.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer instead internally promoted Klint Kubiak, 33, the son of retiring offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak. Zimmer’s son Adam, 37, also is a co-defensive coordinator on his staff.