REPORT: New York Giants NOT trying to ‘close deal’ with Matt Patricia

By
Don Drysdale
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Wednesday was quite the day for news about New England Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia and where he may or may not end up accepting a head coaching job when the Patriots season concludes.

It all started when Peter King of Sports Illustrated reported that Patricia’s preference was not the Detroit Lions but the New York Giants.

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This, of course, created panic in Motown as many fans believed Patricia was coming to Detroit to save the Lions.

That panic was elevated to an even higher level when Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reported that all signs point to Patricia becoming the Giants next head coach. But those who were actually paying attention realized that Leonard’s story was nothing new whatsoever and that he had just used King’s report (without mentioning King) to spin a story.

Patricia may or may not end up with the New York Giants, but according to Mike Garafolo, a reporter for the NFL Network, the Giants ARE NOT currently trying to close a deal with the Patriots DC.

Garafolo said he has talked to multiple sources close to the Giants’ head coaching search and they have indicated to him that they have concluded their first round of interviews but they have not “locked into” Patricia and they certainly are “not trying to close a deal” with him at this time.

It is important to note that the NFL’s tampering policy prohibits teams to make a deal (or even agree to a deal) with a candidate until the “conclusion of the employer club’s playing season.”

Via NFL tampering policy:

No contract shall be executed, and no agreement to execute a contract, or an announcement of a contract or of an agreement for employment, shall be permitted until after the conclusion of the employer club’s playing season.

Since the Patriots are still in the NFL Playoffs, this means that no team will be able to make an agreement until New England is eliminated, or the Super Bowl is over, whichever comes first.

So, Lions fans can breathe easy, right? Well, not so fast.

Despite the NFL’s tampering policy being extremely clear as to what is and what is not permitted, rules are broken from time to time.

In fact, in 2014, it was not much of a secret that then Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn was going to be the next head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, even before the Seahawks played in the Super Bowl. It happened again last season when Falcons OC Kyle Shanahan to the San Francisco 49ers was rumored to be a done deal before Atlanta’s season was over.

Though Patricia has been reported to be the favorite of Lions GM Bob Quinn, it is important to point out that Quinn nor anyone else from the organization has come out and said it.

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That being said, if Patricia is not the Lions first choice, then they may have already signed somebody else, like Houston Texans defensive coordinator Mike Vrabel, who has also been rumored to be near the top of the Lions list.

One thing we have learned over the years of watching the NFL coaching carousel is that there will always be rumors and reports that surface on a daily basis but until a team actually makes an official announcement, nothing is set in stone.