The most important hire, of course, is the head coach, and the Giants got that done in high-flying fashion with the wooing and securing of John Harbaugh on a five-year deal to bring the franchise back to winning ways.

The second-most important hire comes next. Who Harbaugh brings in as his offensive coordinator will be crucial to the further development of Jaxson Dart.

Harbaugh’s rise through the ranks came mostly as a special teams coordinator and he spent time as a defensive backs coach. He relies on his coordinators to run the offense and defense. It certainly would come as no surprise if Harbaugh looks to replicate some of what he had with the Ravens and turns the Giants offense over to Todd Monken. He is the favorite to land the job, The Post has learned.

“He does a great job,’’ an NFL coaching source told The Post.

Todd Monken (l) and John Harbaugh (r). TNS

There are steps to take, as the Giants must interview two minority or female candidates from outside the organization before they can make a coordinator hire, in accordance with the Rooney Rule. With so many head coach vacancies — now eight, with the Giants closing their opening — and staff upheaval around the league, there are 12 teams without an offensive coordinator. Competition for these jobs will be hot and heavy.

Harbaugh likely will not have to do any arm-twisting to reunite with Monken.

Jaxson Dart in Week 18. Robert Sabo for NY Post

Monken, 59, has worked with a wide variety of quarterbacks. He was with Harbaugh in Baltimore the past three years, dealing with the physical brilliance and, at times, medical issues of Lamar Jackson. That relationship reportedly ran its course and Monken last week admitted to not getting the best out of the two-time MVP quarterback.

“I didn’t coach Lamar well enough,’’ Monken said last week on the “Ryan Ripken Show.” “I didn’t have as good a relationship as I could have. I didn’t do the things we needed to do this year to win enough games to give ourselves a chance.’’

Monken was with the Browns as offensive coordinator in 2019 when Baker Mayfield, in his second NFL season, passed for what remains a career-high 3,827 yards. Monken was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Georgia in 2021 and 2022 for Kirby Smart, helping unheralded Stetson Bennett and the Bulldogs win back-to-back national championships.

“You’ve got to have a great quarterback,’’ Monken said. “Lamar Jackson is a great quarterback. That gives you a chance every year. I want to be where they have a great quarterback.’’

There is little doubt most offensive coordinators will want to work with Dart. Brian Daboll was in on the nascent stages of Dart’s NFL development and did a fine job with him. Monken would be an experienced, respected voice for Dart to hear in his second NFL season.

With the Ravens, Monken utilized a traditional fullback far more than other offenses and his 2025 usage of three wide receiver sets was the lowest in the league. Whether that translates to the Giants roster — or if that roster gets reshaped to cater to Monken’s system — remains to be seen.

Jackson won his second MVP award in 2023, his first year with Monken. In 2024, Monken’s unit became the first offense with 4,000 passing yards and 3,000 rushing yards in the same season. The Ravens that year were No. 1 in the league in total offense, rushing and red zone offense.

Monken interviewed Wednesday for the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator job.

It certainly seems logical that Monken will want to join Harbaugh with the Giants. Together, Harbaugh and Monken went 13-4 and 12-5 before this season’s dip to 8-9, with Jackson missing four games. Despite missing the playoffs in 2025, Monken remains a believer in Harbaugh.

“Are you going to tell me John Harbaugh’s message after 18 years as a head coach, the best I’ve been around, besides Kirby Smart, those two guys, that all of a sudden the message isn’t clear?’’ Monken said. “He’s the best, to me, of motivating and directing and keeping a team moving in a certain direction. And I’m not saying that — he may never hire me again, he might think I’m just some clown that should be working at IHOP — I’m just saying I think it’s an easy cop-out instead of saying, ‘You know what, I’ve got to coach better, I’ve got to freaking play better, that’s what I’m paid to do. That’s a fact.’ ’’

Todd Monken in December 2025. Getty Images

Monken is not likely to be headed to IHOP anytime soon, unless he wants some pancakes.

The most important hire, of course, is the head coach, and the Giants got that done in high-flying fashion with the wooing and securing of John Harbaugh to a five-year deal to bring the franchise back to winning ways.