Former Giants General Manager Ernie Accorsi Dies at 84
Ernie Accorsi, the longtime NFL executive whose decisions helped lay the foundation for one of the most important periods in New York Giants history, has died at 84.
The Giants announced that Accorsi died Saturday surrounded by his family.
His career in professional football spanned 37 years and included general manager positions with the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns and New York Giants.
Accorsi joined the Giants organization as an assistant to longtime general manager George Young before taking over as GM in 1998. He remained in that position through the 2006 season.
During his nine seasons running the Giants, New York won two NFC East titles, reached the playoffs four times and advanced to Super Bowl XXXV.
But some of Accorsi’s most consequential decisions would be fully realized only after he retired.
In 2004, Accorsi hired Tom Coughlin as the Giants’ head coach.
Months later came the move that would become inseparable from his legacy.
During the 2004 NFL Draft, the Giants selected Philip Rivers with the fourth overall pick and completed a trade with the San Diego Chargers for No. 1 overall selection Eli Manning.
Manning became the Giants’ franchise quarterback for 16 seasons.
Accorsi retired following the 2006 season. One year later, Coughlin and Manning helped lead New York to a victory over the previously undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. Four years later, they defeated New England again in Super Bowl XLVI.
Although Accorsi was no longer running the team, the Giants presented him with championship rings from both Super Bowl victories.
In 2016, the Giants inducted Accorsi into the franchise’s Ring of Honor, making him only the second general manager to receive the distinction.
Accorsi spent decades evaluating players, hiring coaches and building football organizations. In New York, two of the decisions he made near the end of that career—choosing a head coach and pursuing a quarterback—became central pieces of two championship teams.
He retired before those championships arrived.
But the architecture was already there.
Ernie Accorsi was 84.
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