Judge, Rhule have history
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The game between the Carolina Panthers and New York Giants on Sunday matches two struggling NFL teams. However, there’s so much more to the story, starting with the coaches.
Matt Rhule of the Panthers (3-3) and Joe Judge of the Giants (1-5) are going to be linked to the wild coaching searches that followed the 2019 season.
Rhule, a former Giants assistant who was coaching at Baylor, was considered the front-runner to replace Pat Shurmur with the Giants after a 4-12 season. He had an interview set with the team hierarchy in early January.
Panthers owner David Tepper went to Rhule’s home in Waco, Texas, and beat the Giants to the punch. He offered Rhule a seven-year, $63 million contract and got an agreement.
Rhule reportedly offered the Giants a chance to match the deal, but New York decided to hire Judge, the special teams coordinator for the Patriots.
“I had a chance to have a conversation with them,” Rhule said Thursday. “I was unbelievably flattered, but the truth is it never really got to that point. I got offered the job in Carolina and took it. It just seemed like the right thing for us at the time.”
The storylines extend beyond the coaches.
The game also was supposed to be a matchup of two of the NFL’s best running backs: Christian McCaffrey of the Panthers and Saquon Barkley of the Giants. McCaffrey is on injured reserve with a hamstring injury and Barkley is out with a badly sprained ankle.
The contest also marks the return of former Jets quarterback Sam Darnold and wideout Robby Anderson to MetLife Stadium. Anderson left New Jersey two years ago, and Darnold was traded to Carolina in the offseason.
Carolina has lost three games in a row. The Giants are coming off their two worst losses of the season.
“I just want to win, baby,” Giants safety Jabrill Peppers said. “I want to make plays, go out there and win ballgames.”
Slayton expected back: While the New York Giants will again be without playmaking receivers Kenny Golladay and Kadarius Toney, the offense is expected to get back wideout Darius Slayton.
Slayton, who led the team in yards receiving in his first two NFL seasons, has missed the last three games with a hamstring injury. He warmed up for last Sunday’s game against the Rams, but he didn’t get a jersey for the 38-11 loss that dropped New York to 1-5.
Barring a setback, Slayton is looking forward to playing against the Panthers.
“He’s made progress continuously. He was close last week,” Judge said. “We’ve done some things with him in practice this week. He’s made some progress. I think it’s fair to say that based on how he comes out of practice today, and maybe if there’s a workout Sunday morning, we’ll know then, but I’m optimistic about it.”