What Are the Giants Getting in New O-line Coach Carmen Bricillo?

We hear from our Raiders colleagues who offered some in-depth information on the Giants new offensive line coach.

Of all the coaching vacancies New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll needs to fill on his staff, one of the top two is the offensive line coach.

Daboll has done just that, hiring Carmen Bricillo, formerly with the Raiders, and a one-time assistant coach on the Patriots whose duties included working with legendary offensive coach Dante Scarnecchia. Bricillo was the only known offensive line coaching candidate linked to the Giants and was one of the quickest hires known to be made by Daboll, who is about to enter his third season as Giants head coach.

In Bricillo, the Giants are getting a guy who, according to Locked On Raiders host Qiant “Your Boy Q” Myers, also the Raider Nation Radio Show host and ESPN Las Vegas’s GameNight, has done more with less.

“I think he did a really good job for what he was working with,” Myers told the Locked on Giants podcast. “I think he does a really good job with developing everybody because I looked at the Raiders' offensive line and thought they should have upgraded it multiple times. They should have gone out and got a big-time right tackle and a right guard. More times than not, they would go out there and get a cheaper veteran… coach him up, and get him ready to play multiple roles.”

Myers pointed to the Raiders' 2022 seventh-round pick, Thayer Munford Jr, who started ten games at tackle (both sides) for the Raiders this past year.

"Colton Miller, the Pro Bowl left tackle for the Raiders, goes down for multiple games. And who slides into the left tackle spot? Thayer Munford, and who holds it down? Thayer Munford," Myers said. "This guy was doubted because he was a seventh-round pick, and all of a sudden he was able to just slide in. And he did a really good job."

Myers wasn't the only one to sing Bricillo's praises. Hondo Carpenter, publisher of Fan Nation's Raiders Today, who has known Bricillo since his addition to the Raiders staff, couldn't say enough good things about the 47-year-old coach with the striking resemblance to Giants head coach Brian Daboll.

"You just went and got one of the best offensive line coaches who does more with less than anybody in the NFL," Carpenter said. "This is a guy that, uh, is going to be loved by the players, not liked, loved. And this is a guy who's able to mentor and put a boot in your rear while putting his arm around your back. This is one of those coaches that hurt the Raiders to lose."

Carpenter said Bricillo takes his role as a teacher very seriously.

"There are a lot of guys who can tell players what to do. But at the NFL level, you have to, these are grown men, and so you have to be a leader of men to be the best coach," Carpenter said. "He is very open with his players. For example, there was a game that the Raiders lost where he felt like his game plan was not good. So he walked in and the entire film session, showing them where he was wrong and it stunned the players.

"He goes, 'Listen, I'm not holding you to any standard. I don't hold me to.' One of his philosophies is, 'If one of you is screwing up, that's on you. But if two or more of you are, I'm not teaching it.' One young player explained it best: You don't play for Carm, you play with Carm. He's in there, he's in the trenches, he's very detail-oriented. You constantly find him with his guys. They're gonna be out to eat together. They're gonna beat each other's birthday parties for their kids. He builds relationships."

The Giants offensive line was charged with allowing 85 sacks last season, the second most in league history since sacks became a stat. The unit, ravaged by injuries, finished 30th in Pro Football Focus's pass-blocking efficiency rating.

The sacks and lack of consistency in younger players like Joshua Ezeudu, Marcus McKethan, Evan Neal, and John Michael Schmitz all contributed to Daboll's decision to fire Bobby Johnson, whom he brought with him from Buffalo when hired by the Giants, and go in a different direction.

Be sure to check out the full Locked On Giants podcast featuring the interviews with Qiant Myers and Hondo Carpenter for much more on Carmen Bricillo, including his teaching style, his core beliefs and more.

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