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The New York Giants are mourning the loss of Ray Handley, a former assistant coach who later led the franchise as head coach. He was 81.
The Giants said Handley’s family member, Rob Handley, confirmed the former coach’s passing. Information on a cause of death was not immediately made available.
Handley first joined the Giants coaching staff in 1984, working as an assistant under then-head coach Bill Parcells. During his seven-year tenure as the team’s offensive backfield coach, Handley played a role in the Giants winning two Super Bowl titles.
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New York Giants head coach Ray Handley on the sidelines against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Tampa Stadium on November 24, 1991 in Tampa, Florida. (USA TODAY Sports)
Parcells retired after the Giants’ second championship in that run. Handley was elevated to the head coaching position in 1991.
But Parcells’ success ultimately proved difficult for Handley to follow. One of his first key decisions was naming Jeff Hostetler over Phil Simms as the starting quarterback during training camp in 1991. Simms had flourished as a starter the previous season until he suffered a leg injury before Hostetler took over to finish the Super Bowl run.
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The Giants went 8-8 in Handley’s debut season and fell to 6-10 the following year. Handley was fired after the 1992 season and was replaced by former Denver Broncos coach Dan Reeves.
New York Giants head coach Ray Handley watches from the sidelines during an NFL game circa 1992 at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Handley was the head coach of the New York Giants from 1991-92. (Focus on Sports/Getty Images)
Handley served as an assistant coach at Army, Stanford and Air Force before taking an assistant coaching job with the Giants. He did not coach again after being fired by New York.
Before entering the coaching ranks, Handley was a running back at Stanford.
