The Dave Gettleman era is officially over.
The New York Giants announced Monday afternoon that Gettleman has retired from his post as senior vice president and general manager, making official a personnel move that was heavily rumored in the last few weeks, even more so after he was seen shaking hands and taking selfies on the field with friends and family prior to Sunday’s season finale against Washington.
Per the team’s release, Gettleman told ownership he was officially retiring last week, and announced it to the team Monday morning in their final team meeting.
"It was a privilege to serve as the general manager of the New York Giants the last four years and to have spent so many years of my career with this franchise," Gettleman said in the Giants’ release announcing the move. "We obviously have not had the on-the-field success I expected, and that is disappointing. However, I have many fond memories here, including two Super Bowl victories, and I wish the team and organization only the best moving forward. There are many good people here who pour their souls into this organization. I am proud to have worked alongside them."
"We would like to thank Dave for his commitment to this franchise," co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch said in a joint statement. "He has had a highly accomplished 35-year career in the National Football League. Dave was integral in building three of our Super Bowl teams, including two championship teams, and we wish Dave, his wife Joanne and their entire family all the best in his retirement."
Per ownership, the search for a new GM will begin immediately, and it has been reported that head coach Joe Judge’s job “is safe.”
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"This will be a comprehensive search for our next general manager," said Mara in the team’s release. "We are looking for a person who demonstrates exceptional leadership and communication abilities, somebody who will oversee all aspects of our football operations, including player personnel, college scouting and coaching."
Gettleman, 70, re-joined the Giants as GM prior to the 2018 season to fix some of the holes on the roster left at the end of the Coughlin/McAdoo era, but the team went just 19-46 in his four seasons and went through two head coaches, firing Pat Shurmur after two seasons before bringing in Joe Judge.
“It is an understatement to say John and I are disappointed by the lack of success we have had on the field,” Tisch said of Gettleman’s tenure in the team’s release. “We are united in our commitment to find a general manager who will provide the direction necessary for us to achieve the on-field performance and results we all expect."
Gettleman’s retirement ends a 35-year career in the NFL, which began in 1986 with the Buffalo Bills. He spent 12 years as a scout with the Bills, Broncos, and BLESTO scouting system before joining the Giants in 1998 as an assistant pro personnel director.
He was promoted to pro personnel director in 1999 and remained in that post for over a decade, leaving the Giants after a 2012 season spent as the team’s senior pro personnel analyst to take the Carolina Panthers’ GM job.
Gettleman would spend four seasons (2013-16) in Carolina, helping steer them to a 40-23-1 record, three NFC South titles, and a spot in Super Bowl 50, but he was shockingly fired in July 2017 and was out of football for a few months before being re-hired by Big Blue that December.
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
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