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Pat Shurmur officially was introduced as the 18th head coach of the New York Giants on Friday. While the New York-based media got to know Shurmur, the 52-year-old coach admitted that he plans to introduce himself to one player in particular: wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.
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"I've watched him play and compete and when you throw all the other stuff out and you watch him on the field, he's outstanding," Shurmur said. "So it makes sense to throw him the ball, I'm just going to say that right away. If I didn't acknowledge that, then you definitely got the wrong guy up here."
"What I think needs to happen now is I need to get to know him. I need to get to know what makes him tick and I need to talk to him about what it is that we're looking for (from) a guy who plays for the New York Giants. I think those are the things that go back to relationship building that need to happen very, very soon."
Beckham had season-ending ankle surgery on Oct. 9. The three-time Pro Bowl selection was injured when he leaped to catch a pass and the landing saw his ankle get caught beneath Los Angeles Chargers cornerback Casey Hayward.
Beckham, who had 25 receptions for 302 yards and three touchdowns in 2017, is the only player in NFL history to catch at least 90 passes and accumulate at least 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first three campaigns.
Shurmur also made it clear that he plans to work with quarterback Eli Manning in the 2018 season.
"I watched Eli throw a little bit over the summer and I walked away saying he looked really, really good," Shurmur said. "He looked fit. He was throwing the ball well. The ball had good velocity coming off his hands. Again, I think he's got years left. How much? I don't know. But I think he has time left and I look forward to working with him.
"I think what's important is we have a guy here who has helped this organization win Super Bowls. He's an outstanding player and I'm really looking forward to working with him."
Shurmur, who spent the last two seasons as the offensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings, will be embarking on his second stint as a head coach. He was 9-23 as Cleveland's head coach in 2011-12 but was fired when new ownership took over.
Shurmur also won the final game of the 2015 season after Chip Kelly was fired by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Shurmur takes over the Giants, who are fresh off a 3-13 season. He is New York's third coach since Tom Coughlin's 12-year tenure ended following the 2015 campaign.
Ben McAdoo won 11 games and reached the playoffs in his first season but was fired Dec. 4 -- one day after Manning saw his streak of 210 straight starts end. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo coached the final four games on an interim basis.
Shurmur described the culture he wants to build for the Giants after such a difficult season.
"We need to have a tough, gritty team that knows how to compete," Shurmur said. "I think what's important is when we put the roster together, we want to first accumulate 90 players that love to play football."
Shurmur has been an NFL coach for 19 seasons and his teams have reached the playoffs nine times and won seven division titles. He advanced to Super Bowl XXXIX following the 2004 season with the Eagles as the quarterbacks coach under Andy Reid.
Shurmur worked for Reid from 1999 to 2008. He spent his first three seasons as the tight ends and offensive line coach before being elevated to quarterbacks coach in 2002.
During his first stint with the Eagles, he helped Donovan McNabb become the most prolific passer in team history. In 2008, McNabb set a team record with 345 completions and 3,916 yards.
This season, the Vikings finished 10th in the league in scoring (23.9 points per game), 11th in total yards (356.9) and seventh in rushing yards (122.3). Minnesota also was third in the league in third-down conversion percentage at 43.5 (94-for-216).
