1
00:00:01,320 --> 00:00:03,360
Speaker 1: Welcome to the Giants Huddle. Get him in a hud,

2
00:00:03,480 --> 00:00:05,440
Speaker 1: Get him in a Huddle, Get him in New York

3
00:00:05,440 --> 00:00:08,760
Speaker 1: Giants Podcast. Welcome to the newest edition of the Giants

4
00:00:08,800 --> 00:00:12,080
Speaker 1: Huddle Podcast. I'm Lance Meadow. Today's guests will be the

5
00:00:12,080 --> 00:00:15,560
Speaker 1: head football coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide, Nick Saban.

6
00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:18,600
Speaker 1: Before we get to that conversation, a reminder you can

7
00:00:18,640 --> 00:00:21,880
Speaker 1: find the Giant Huttle Podcast on all your favorite podcast platforms,

8
00:00:22,079 --> 00:00:25,680
Speaker 1: Giants dot Com, Slash Podcasts, and the Giants Mobile app.

9
00:00:26,000 --> 00:00:28,440
Speaker 1: Now let's get to our special guest. I had a

10
00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:30,960
Speaker 1: chance to chat with Nick Saban about the Giants second

11
00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:34,279
Speaker 1: round pick this year, safety Xavier McKinney, as well as

12
00:00:34,320 --> 00:00:37,880
Speaker 1: his connections to Big Blues coaching staff coach Lance Meadow

13
00:00:37,880 --> 00:00:40,920
Speaker 1: here on the Giant Huttle Podcast. Appreciate the time today.

14
00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:43,320
Speaker 1: I hope you and yours are safe and healthy. How's

15
00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:46,120
Speaker 1: everything on your end? Well, I hope everything in New

16
00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:48,720
Speaker 1: York is getting better and you all are safe and

17
00:00:49,200 --> 00:00:53,320
Speaker 1: sound up there as well. Absolutely appreciate that coach. Well,

18
00:00:53,360 --> 00:00:56,360
Speaker 1: Coach McKinney played all over your defense. You lined them

19
00:00:56,440 --> 00:00:59,920
Speaker 1: up at various positions. Safety in the box, in the slide.

20
00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:02,600
Speaker 1: You used him as a blitzer. What is it about

21
00:01:02,680 --> 00:01:05,679
Speaker 1: his skill set that you entrusted him to take on

22
00:01:05,800 --> 00:01:09,440
Speaker 1: multiple roles? I think you know, Xavier has a lot

23
00:01:09,480 --> 00:01:12,600
Speaker 1: of diversity as a player. Um, you know, he can

24
00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:14,880
Speaker 1: play man and man. He's got pretty good ball judgment,

25
00:01:14,920 --> 00:01:17,640
Speaker 1: he's a good tacker. He's got a lot of toughness. Uh,

26
00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:21,880
Speaker 1: he's a very instinctive and effective blitzer. He's got some

27
00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:26,120
Speaker 1: verst and acceleration, you know, to come off the edge

28
00:01:26,200 --> 00:01:28,360
Speaker 1: or blitz up the middle. And he's got enough power

29
00:01:28,400 --> 00:01:30,959
Speaker 1: to take on a blocker if he needs to. So

30
00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:34,680
Speaker 1: he can do just about all the critical factors in

31
00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:36,720
Speaker 1: terms of what we look for in a safety year

32
00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:40,360
Speaker 1: and uh, he was as he got experienced, he was

33
00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:44,560
Speaker 1: smart enough to be able to play multiple positions. Um.

34
00:01:44,640 --> 00:01:47,160
Speaker 1: So you know he played safety for us and what

35
00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:49,680
Speaker 1: we called din when we went to six defensive acts

36
00:01:49,720 --> 00:01:53,760
Speaker 1: and played strong safety one year, free safety one year. So, um,

37
00:01:54,000 --> 00:01:55,880
Speaker 1: he just got a lot of diversity as a player.

38
00:01:56,520 --> 00:01:59,280
Speaker 1: What's his biggest strength in your mind in terms of

39
00:01:59,320 --> 00:02:02,600
Speaker 1: where he be able to have the most significant impact

40
00:02:02,640 --> 00:02:05,480
Speaker 1: with that Giant's defense. All right, I think the guy's

41
00:02:05,680 --> 00:02:08,240
Speaker 1: got some dog in him. You know, he's a competitive guy.

42
00:02:08,320 --> 00:02:11,480
Speaker 1: He's a playmaker. He was you know, we we have

43
00:02:11,560 --> 00:02:14,720
Speaker 1: a production in a point system here that we used

44
00:02:14,720 --> 00:02:17,480
Speaker 1: and he was always you know, high on that board

45
00:02:17,560 --> 00:02:21,440
Speaker 1: because forces fumbles, shows up in the right place, does

46
00:02:21,440 --> 00:02:24,720
Speaker 1: a good job of executing. He's instinctive, he's a quick reactor,

47
00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:29,280
Speaker 1: he's got a burst. He can be a not pack tackler. So, um,

48
00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:33,639
Speaker 1: he's always been a real playmaker for us. And I think, uh,

49
00:02:33,639 --> 00:02:35,880
Speaker 1: it comes in a lot of different ways, but that's

50
00:02:35,880 --> 00:02:38,880
Speaker 1: probably his greatest strength. It's his production. You mentioned you

51
00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:42,000
Speaker 1: view him as that alpha dog. I'm curious how much

52
00:02:42,040 --> 00:02:44,760
Speaker 1: coach did you rely on him to be the conduit

53
00:02:45,120 --> 00:02:48,040
Speaker 1: between the coaching staff and the defense on the field

54
00:02:48,080 --> 00:02:51,320
Speaker 1: in terms of communication as well as getting everyone set

55
00:02:51,880 --> 00:02:54,800
Speaker 1: all right. Well, as he got experienced, uh, he learned

56
00:02:55,120 --> 00:02:59,399
Speaker 1: how important it was to communicate. I think when young players,

57
00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:01,560
Speaker 1: you know, to get young players here, they're so worried

58
00:03:01,600 --> 00:03:04,040
Speaker 1: about what they're supposed to do, they don't realize the

59
00:03:04,080 --> 00:03:08,000
Speaker 1: importance of communication. And this past year, you know, X

60
00:03:08,080 --> 00:03:10,480
Speaker 1: really took the bull by the horns, and you know

61
00:03:10,520 --> 00:03:12,799
Speaker 1: it was the guy that ran the secondary and made

62
00:03:12,800 --> 00:03:16,360
Speaker 1: a lot of calls and adjustments and understood that, you know,

63
00:03:16,440 --> 00:03:19,680
Speaker 1: sort of uh took that responsibility and ran with it,

64
00:03:19,720 --> 00:03:21,600
Speaker 1: and I think that's an important thing for him at

65
00:03:21,639 --> 00:03:24,639
Speaker 1: the next level. G M. Dave Gettleman said they had

66
00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:27,200
Speaker 1: a first round grade on McKinney when he spoke to

67
00:03:27,240 --> 00:03:30,320
Speaker 1: the media following the selection, and many projected him to

68
00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:32,880
Speaker 1: go in round one when you take it to consideration

69
00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:36,080
Speaker 1: his versatility and the resume you just laid out, Coach,

70
00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:38,040
Speaker 1: how much of a steel was this for the Giants?

71
00:03:39,240 --> 00:03:42,360
Speaker 1: It was? It was? I think so. I think he

72
00:03:42,480 --> 00:03:46,800
Speaker 1: was the first safety taken normally, statistically they are two

73
00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:49,200
Speaker 1: safeties picked in the first round as you look at

74
00:03:49,240 --> 00:03:53,040
Speaker 1: historical data, so he should have been a first round pick,

75
00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:57,800
Speaker 1: you know, based on historical information, and certainly as a player,

76
00:03:58,440 --> 00:04:01,280
Speaker 1: I think most people had him eat it there. I

77
00:04:01,360 --> 00:04:04,280
Speaker 1: just think sometimes you know in the draft, when there's

78
00:04:04,320 --> 00:04:08,800
Speaker 1: an overload another position, like whether it's receiver, offensive line,

79
00:04:08,880 --> 00:04:12,080
Speaker 1: whatever it is, you know that guys don't always get

80
00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:15,280
Speaker 1: picked where they're great. Says so. Um. I think this

81
00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:18,760
Speaker 1: is a really really good pick for the Giants, And um,

82
00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:21,480
Speaker 1: I think, you know, like I tell all the guys here,

83
00:04:21,480 --> 00:04:23,200
Speaker 1: it's not where you get picked. That's what you do

84
00:04:23,320 --> 00:04:25,520
Speaker 1: with the opportunity that you have, So don't worry so

85
00:04:25,640 --> 00:04:28,279
Speaker 1: much about where you get picked, but you know what

86
00:04:28,400 --> 00:04:30,840
Speaker 1: you do after you get the opportunity. Well, and speaking

87
00:04:30,880 --> 00:04:33,800
Speaker 1: of this opportunity, a unique offseason coach because of the

88
00:04:33,839 --> 00:04:36,680
Speaker 1: fact that there's going to be very limited on field workouts,

89
00:04:37,040 --> 00:04:40,680
Speaker 1: given how much you challenge players both mentally and physically

90
00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:44,039
Speaker 1: within your defense, how well does that suit him to

91
00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:47,440
Speaker 1: navigate an offseason like this as he makes the transition

92
00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:50,359
Speaker 1: to the NFL. I think it will be helpful to

93
00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:53,839
Speaker 1: him because you know we we do. You know when

94
00:04:53,839 --> 00:04:56,520
Speaker 1: I was a coach at the Dolphins, or you know,

95
00:04:56,880 --> 00:05:02,159
Speaker 1: Bill Belichick's defensive coordinator, you know on M Cleveland. You know,

96
00:05:02,240 --> 00:05:04,760
Speaker 1: we do a lot of the same stuff here from

97
00:05:04,760 --> 00:05:08,880
Speaker 1: a coverage standpoint, from a secondary standpoint, so our guys

98
00:05:08,920 --> 00:05:11,680
Speaker 1: typically make good adjustments. I know a few years ago

99
00:05:11,720 --> 00:05:14,839
Speaker 1: we had six guys that signed NFL contracts and five

100
00:05:14,839 --> 00:05:18,240
Speaker 1: of them end up starting as rookie. So, um, even

101
00:05:18,240 --> 00:05:20,400
Speaker 1: though this will be a transition, I think most of

102
00:05:20,440 --> 00:05:23,440
Speaker 1: the things, um, the X is going to be exposed to,

103
00:05:23,640 --> 00:05:28,120
Speaker 1: he's probably done, may not call it something different, So

104
00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:31,600
Speaker 1: I think it will be an easy transition for him.

105
00:05:31,680 --> 00:05:34,000
Speaker 1: We're talking with the head coach of the Alabama Crimson

106
00:05:34,000 --> 00:05:36,680
Speaker 1: Tied Nick Saban here on the Giants Huttle podcast and

107
00:05:36,960 --> 00:05:39,680
Speaker 1: coach You're coaching Tree has quite the presence on the

108
00:05:39,680 --> 00:05:42,760
Speaker 1: current Giant staff. Joe Judge was a special team's assistant

109
00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:45,600
Speaker 1: for you at Alabama for three seasons from two thousand

110
00:05:45,640 --> 00:05:48,239
Speaker 1: nine to two thousand and eleven. What did you see

111
00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:51,080
Speaker 1: in him that may have given you an inkling that

112
00:05:51,160 --> 00:05:54,400
Speaker 1: he had head coaching material in him? But you know,

113
00:05:54,440 --> 00:05:58,880
Speaker 1: when Joe was here, he was a young guy, very bright, enthusiastic,

114
00:05:59,400 --> 00:06:04,279
Speaker 1: great sure um, really good relationships with the players, had

115
00:06:04,360 --> 00:06:09,200
Speaker 1: lots of leadership UM qualities about him, Um because of

116
00:06:09,240 --> 00:06:11,480
Speaker 1: the example that he said, and the energy and enthusy

117
00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:13,520
Speaker 1: hasn't he had on the daily basis, And he was

118
00:06:13,560 --> 00:06:16,560
Speaker 1: really smart. You know, I had a good understanding of football.

119
00:06:17,080 --> 00:06:20,640
Speaker 1: So UM, no surprise to me that you know Joe

120
00:06:21,200 --> 00:06:24,520
Speaker 1: Um has gotten to this point in his career. UH,

121
00:06:24,560 --> 00:06:27,640
Speaker 1: And we certainly wish him well. He did a fantastic

122
00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:30,560
Speaker 1: job here for us. It certainly doesn't hurt that Joe

123
00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:32,599
Speaker 1: Judge has at a front row seat to watching you

124
00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:35,799
Speaker 1: in action as well. As Bill Belichick over the last decade,

125
00:06:35,839 --> 00:06:38,480
Speaker 1: but more often than not, first time head coaches are

126
00:06:38,520 --> 00:06:41,240
Speaker 1: compared to their mentors. And you've seen many of your

127
00:06:41,279 --> 00:06:43,880
Speaker 1: former assistants work their way up the coaching ladder, and

128
00:06:44,200 --> 00:06:47,120
Speaker 1: Judge now has the opportunity to shape his own identity,

129
00:06:47,200 --> 00:06:50,240
Speaker 1: built his own culture. So what would be your advice

130
00:06:50,320 --> 00:06:53,640
Speaker 1: to him in terms of navigating his first season as

131
00:06:53,680 --> 00:06:57,359
Speaker 1: now the official headman. Yeah, I don't think it's really fair,

132
00:06:57,760 --> 00:07:01,200
Speaker 1: um that you know, when you have former assistance on

133
00:07:01,240 --> 00:07:04,680
Speaker 1: your staff and get compared to their mentors, because you know,

134
00:07:04,760 --> 00:07:07,800
Speaker 1: we all have different situations. I mean, you know, we

135
00:07:07,920 --> 00:07:11,120
Speaker 1: we've had the chance to establish our program, established our team,

136
00:07:11,200 --> 00:07:13,560
Speaker 1: get the kind of players that we want. And when

137
00:07:13,560 --> 00:07:16,200
Speaker 1: you come into a new situation, you gotta number one,

138
00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:18,680
Speaker 1: be yourself, be who you are, don't try to be

139
00:07:18,800 --> 00:07:23,160
Speaker 1: somebody else. Um, you know, and do things the way

140
00:07:23,280 --> 00:07:27,000
Speaker 1: you want to do them, and um, you know, get

141
00:07:27,040 --> 00:07:29,840
Speaker 1: the kind of players that you want. Uh, And it

142
00:07:29,880 --> 00:07:33,720
Speaker 1: takes some time to build that. Um. I don't you

143
00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:36,720
Speaker 1: know totally know the giant situation. You know, we're when

144
00:07:36,760 --> 00:07:38,800
Speaker 1: you're in college and I get to see NFL games

145
00:07:38,840 --> 00:07:41,400
Speaker 1: all the time on Sunday because we work. But I

146
00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:43,640
Speaker 1: know Joe will do a really good job of doing that.

147
00:07:43,720 --> 00:07:45,880
Speaker 1: But I think that's the most important thing. Don't try

148
00:07:45,920 --> 00:07:48,360
Speaker 1: to be like somebody else. Be be who you are well.

149
00:07:48,400 --> 00:07:50,480
Speaker 1: And as I mentioned, it's not just Joe Judge you

150
00:07:50,480 --> 00:07:53,040
Speaker 1: have a connection to. If there's anyone who has been

151
00:07:53,080 --> 00:07:55,480
Speaker 1: with you at Alabama the longest, it likely was New

152
00:07:55,520 --> 00:07:58,920
Speaker 1: Giants running backs coach Burden Burns, who arrived Atbama with

153
00:07:59,000 --> 00:08:01,800
Speaker 1: you in two thousands, Evan. He has a great track

154
00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:05,640
Speaker 1: record coaches you well know developing NFL running backs, mark Ingram,

155
00:08:05,640 --> 00:08:09,080
Speaker 1: Derrick Henry certainly come to mind. What is his presence

156
00:08:09,120 --> 00:08:12,560
Speaker 1: going to do for both Judge as well as somebody

157
00:08:12,600 --> 00:08:15,920
Speaker 1: like se Kwan Barkley. I think, you know, first of all,

158
00:08:15,960 --> 00:08:20,080
Speaker 1: Burton's are very fundamental type per you know, running back coach,

159
00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:23,640
Speaker 1: and uh, he really has a really good grasp of

160
00:08:24,200 --> 00:08:27,720
Speaker 1: how players need to press holes, read plays, read blocks,

161
00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:31,640
Speaker 1: um and uh. He really helped in the development of

162
00:08:31,640 --> 00:08:34,000
Speaker 1: our players here, you know, because of that, because a

163
00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:36,360
Speaker 1: lot of guys that are great runningbacks, especially when we

164
00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:38,440
Speaker 1: get him, they just getting the ball on with it.

165
00:08:38,760 --> 00:08:41,720
Speaker 1: You know, they don't understand that you're setting up blocks

166
00:08:41,720 --> 00:08:45,880
Speaker 1: and you're helping people create holes. How you actually you know,

167
00:08:45,960 --> 00:08:48,600
Speaker 1: take the correct steps and take the right you know,

168
00:08:49,200 --> 00:08:52,480
Speaker 1: have the right you know point of a pack relative

169
00:08:52,520 --> 00:08:55,520
Speaker 1: to aiming point, and how that's going to impact an

170
00:08:55,520 --> 00:08:57,960
Speaker 1: effect your chance to have a successful run on that

171
00:08:58,040 --> 00:09:02,199
Speaker 1: particular play. Same band as protection, you know, breaks it down.

172
00:09:02,280 --> 00:09:06,160
Speaker 1: Players understand it. Um you know. So Pertinent is a

173
00:09:06,240 --> 00:09:10,080
Speaker 1: really good fundamental coach. He's got a great personality. Players

174
00:09:10,120 --> 00:09:13,360
Speaker 1: love them, they love playing for him, and uh, he

175
00:09:13,440 --> 00:09:15,360
Speaker 1: does a really good job. But he will get on

176
00:09:15,640 --> 00:09:18,440
Speaker 1: now and and you know, confront and demand that they

177
00:09:18,480 --> 00:09:22,359
Speaker 1: do things at a certain level, which is was always

178
00:09:22,400 --> 00:09:24,640
Speaker 1: you know something with some of the high pro talk

179
00:09:24,720 --> 00:09:27,559
Speaker 1: guys we had here that he did the extremely well.

180
00:09:27,760 --> 00:09:30,360
Speaker 1: Coach before I let you go, as I mentioned, you

181
00:09:30,400 --> 00:09:32,880
Speaker 1: have a number of connections to the Giants coaching staff,

182
00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:35,160
Speaker 1: and you have a number of connections across the league

183
00:09:35,200 --> 00:09:38,000
Speaker 1: because of the fact that you have developed so many coaches.

184
00:09:38,240 --> 00:09:41,000
Speaker 1: When a team like the Giants can turn to somebody

185
00:09:41,040 --> 00:09:43,959
Speaker 1: like you because they have established relationships with you, how

186
00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:46,600
Speaker 1: much does that help in terms of the evaluation and

187
00:09:46,640 --> 00:09:50,560
Speaker 1: trust factor of determining what players to select. Well, I

188
00:09:50,559 --> 00:09:53,080
Speaker 1: think that's up there every organization. You know, we've had

189
00:09:53,120 --> 00:09:55,200
Speaker 1: a lot of guys that have come out of here

190
00:09:55,200 --> 00:09:59,280
Speaker 1: and had successful careers, and um, I think it's because

191
00:09:59,280 --> 00:10:05,280
Speaker 1: they understand process. They understand accountability. UM. You know, somebody's

192
00:10:05,280 --> 00:10:07,760
Speaker 1: going to define an expectation in the standards, you have

193
00:10:07,840 --> 00:10:09,360
Speaker 1: to do something and you need to learn how to

194
00:10:09,360 --> 00:10:11,040
Speaker 1: live up to it. That's what we try to teach

195
00:10:11,160 --> 00:10:14,120
Speaker 1: guys here and that's a way of the world. And

196
00:10:14,679 --> 00:10:16,600
Speaker 1: I think they need to understand that when they go

197
00:10:16,640 --> 00:10:19,319
Speaker 1: to the next level. And I think it helps them

198
00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:23,080
Speaker 1: develop and focus on development so that they can improve

199
00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:26,480
Speaker 1: and make a contribution to the organization. I think the

200
00:10:26,480 --> 00:10:29,360
Speaker 1: track record of a lot of guys doing that makes

201
00:10:29,880 --> 00:10:33,360
Speaker 1: people a little more comfortable, you know, taking our players

202
00:10:33,400 --> 00:10:36,000
Speaker 1: knowing that they've kind of gone through that process here.

203
00:10:36,200 --> 00:10:38,800
Speaker 1: He is the head coach of the Alabama Crimson tied

204
00:10:39,080 --> 00:10:42,880
Speaker 1: Nick saban As. The Giants selected Xavier McKinney in the

205
00:10:42,960 --> 00:10:46,880
Speaker 1: second round of this year's draft. Coach, greatly appreciate the

206
00:10:46,920 --> 00:10:49,040
Speaker 1: time of the insight. I hope you and yours continue

207
00:10:49,080 --> 00:10:51,640
Speaker 1: to stay safe and healthy, and hopefully we'll get back

208
00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:54,080
Speaker 1: on the field sooner rather than later. Thanks so much,

209
00:10:54,600 --> 00:10:58,120
Speaker 1: all right, Thank you appreciate it. Thanks again to Alabama

210
00:10:58,120 --> 00:11:00,600
Speaker 1: football head coach Nick Saban for finding me here on

211
00:11:00,640 --> 00:11:03,760
Speaker 1: the Giant Subtle Podcast, and thank you all for listening.

212
00:11:04,080 --> 00:11:06,720
Speaker 1: A reminder you can find The Giant Subtle Podcast on

213
00:11:06,800 --> 00:11:10,239
Speaker 1: all your favorite podcast platforms. If you're on Apple Podcast,

214
00:11:10,280 --> 00:11:12,839
Speaker 1: please leave a positive review. You can also find it

215
00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:15,560
Speaker 1: on the Giants mobile app and on giants dot com

216
00:11:15,559 --> 00:11:19,200
Speaker 1: slash podcast, where you can find all of our podcast offerings,

217
00:11:19,440 --> 00:11:23,080
Speaker 1: including Big Blue Kickoff Live, our daily talk show covering

218
00:11:23,080 --> 00:11:26,040
Speaker 1: all the latest news surrounding the team. I'm Lance Meadow.

219
00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:28,520
Speaker 1: We'll speak to you next time right here on the

220
00:11:28,559 --> 00:11:29,839
Speaker 1: Giant Subtle Podcast