Giants will have three new coordinators next year- new special team coach also

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Sweatman, two-time Super Bowl champ, retires

Associated Press

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- New York Giants special teams coordinator Mike Sweatman, whose career included two Super Bowl victories with the team, announced his retirement Tuesday.

Coach Tom Coughlin promoted Tom Quinn, Sweatman's assistant this past season, to replace him.

Sweatman, 60, was voted the NFL's special teams coach of the year in 2005. He was previously a Giants assistant from 1985-92, and returned in 2004 when Coughlin took over and hired him to run the special teams.

"I just feel like it is time right now," said Sweatman, who also coached for the New York Jets, Chicago, Minnesota and New England. "I'm sure I'm going to miss it. I'm going to miss the game. I'm going to miss the people that are a part of the game."

The change gives the Giants three new coordinators heading into next season. Former Cleveland Browns coach Chris Palmer was named quarterbacks coach Monday, replacing Kevin Gilbride, who had been promoted to offensive coordinator. Philadelphia Eagles linebackers coach Steve Spagnuolo was hired last week as defensive coordinator, replacing Tim Lewis, who was fired this month after three seasons with the Giants.

Quinn, 39, said he learned a lot from Sweatman over the past year, his first in the NFL.

"He taught me the importance of details, of being so thorough in your work and the preparation and translating that to the fundamentals on the field. He stressed that you must teach and coach very solid fundamentals," Quinn said.

Thomas McGaughey will take Quinn's post as assistant special teams coordinator.

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Mike is a friend of the family and us who knew him already knew this would be his last season until recently when he had a change of thought but he decided anyways that he would stop coaching. Good for him and he did a lot for me over the year. When he was with the Jets I constantly got free things, autographs and when he left I got pretty much everything Jets that he ever had received from the team.

[Maxman]

They should have hired guys that coached at the U. Since that is where all the Giants players will be in the offseason. That way they could have gotten a head start on things.