ST. LOUIS -- At the start of the St. Louis Rams' coaching search, Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was not really on the list.
General manager Billy Devaney assumed New York would be back in the Super Bowl and didn't think he could afford to wait for Spagnuolo.
"I'm such a great predictor of football games," Devaney said Monday. "As soon as they were eliminated it was like, 'Wow, let's start this process."'
Devaney's long-term friendship with Spagnuolo helped speed things from there. Their close relationship was evident at the introductory news conference Monday, with coach and GM, both about 5-foot-7, exchanging height-challenged related digs while adjusting the microphone level.
Friendship aside, the 47-year-old Spagnuolo played an integral role in thwarting the New England Patriots' perfect season in last year's Super Bowl and had another successful year last season despite dealing with injuries to key personnel. He quickly won over ownership and agreed to a four-year contract worth just under $12 million Saturday.
"It was like, automatically, he's basically at the end at the head of the class and going to meet ownership," Devaney said. "There was a plan, there was a confidence, the leadership part came out."
The enthusiasm, too, as he headed into the task of rebuilding a franchise that was 2-14 last year and is 5-27 the last two seasons.
"He was excited about it," Devaney said. "All the hot-button topics that were raised, he embraced fully."
Spagnuolo left his interview Thursday in Los Angeles ready to start rebuilding the Rams.
"When it was all said and done, I had a good feeling," Spagnuolo said. "I was sold, as they were. When you feel the right fit, when you feel you're around the right people, and it's something that has been in your heart for a long time, that's the time to do it."
He stopped well short of a turnaround timetable, though, for a franchise that last went to the playoffs in 2003.
"I'm not going to go there," Spagnuolo said. "We're going to have to start at the beginning here, take it one step at a time, and build on it.
"It's not about predictions and bold promises; it's about building."
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