Giants hiring Houston Texans’ John Ritcher as director of college scouting

The Giants are hiring John Ritcher away from the Houston Texans as their new director of college scouting. Ritcher, who overlapped with Giants GM Joe Schoen in 2011 on the Miami Dolphins’ personnel staff, spent the past eight seasons with the Texans, most recently as Houston’s co-director of college scouting under GM Nick Caserio. Ritcher is lauded by peers for having a strong understanding of what translates from college to the pros, rather than just evaluating players’ traits in a vacuum. Notably, he was a strong advocate for franchise quarterback C.J. Stroud coming out of Ohio State in 2023. He has been a key voice as a Southeast and national scout on a Houston staff that has consistently hit on starter caliber players in the middle rounds of the NFL Draft, on top of taking Stroud, edge Will Anderson and corner Derek Stingley Jr. with high first-round picks. That group of mid-round hits includes edge Charles Omenihu (Texas, 2019 fifth round), edge Jonathan Greenard (Florida, 2020 third round), wide receiver Nico Collins (Michigan, 2021 third round), corner Jalen Pitre (Baylor, 2022 second round), receivers Tank Dell (Houston, 2023 third round) and Xavier Hutchinson (Iowa State, 2023 sixth round), corner Kamari Lassiter (Georgia, 2024 second round), safety Calen Bullock (USC, 2024 third round), receiver Jayden Higgins (Iowa State, 2025 second round), tackle Aireontae Ersery (Minnesota, 2025 second round) and running back Woody Marks (USC, 2025 fourth round). The Giants have not had a director of college scouting in their front office since Chris Pettit’s firing in 2022 on the personnel staff with John Mara nephew Tim McDonnell as director of player personnel and Dennis Hickey as assistant director of player personnel handling of some that workload. Schoen having the ability to hire another former Dolphins colleague is interesting given that the GM is now a lame duck in the final season of his initial five-year contract with the Giants. Then again, Giants senior VP of football operations and strategy Dawn Aponte worked with Ritcher in Miami, as well. The Giants actually have assembled something of a Miami Dolphins North staff in their building in East Rutherford, N.J. Schoen (2008-16), Aponte (2010-16), director of pro scouting Chris Rossetti (2015-21), Hickey (2014-15), outside linebackers coach Charlie Bullen and Ritcher (2011), who was a Dolphins scouting assistant, all worked in Miami during a period when the Dolphins had three winning seasons in a span of 12 years. Ritcher’s hiring was first reported by KPRC 2 in Houston. Giants undrafted rookie corner Thaddeus Dixon tore his Achilles during workouts last week. So the team placed the North Carolina product on injured reserve and signed journeyman outside linebacker Khalid Kareem. Dixon received a $282,500 total guarantee on his undrafted rookie contract, among the tops in the NFL and tied with offensive tackle Ryan Schernecke for highest on the team. … The Giants’ full team begins voluntary OTA spring practices on Tuesday. Their next practice open to the media is Thursday. They will then hold mandatory minicamp on during the second week of June and break until training camp in late July.