Giants explore Spags return

The Giants are in hot pursuit of a new defensive coordinator. According to league sources, they interviewed former Raiders head coach Dennis Allen on Tuesday and are scheduled to meet with old friend Steve Spagnuolo on Wednesday.

The front-runner is believed to be the 55-year-old Spagnuolo, who most recently was the Ravens assistant head coach in charge of defensive backs but served as the Giants defensive coordinator from 2007-08.

Under Spagnuolo’s watch, Giants defenses ranked seventh and fifth in the NFL. The Giants won Super Bowl XLII in the 2007 season with him on staff.

He was hired as head coach by the Rams in 2009 and lasted three seasons in St. Louis before being fired in 2011 — going 1-15 his f irst season, improving to 7-9 the next, then backsliding to 2-14. He spent one season with the Saints as their defensive coordinator in 2012 with poor results before being fired.

Spagnuolo now is trying to resurrect his career in a familiar place — one where he had his greatest success.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh, speaking to the media Tuesday and asked about Spagnuolo interviewing with the Giants, said, “That’s something he deserves, an opportunity to get a look at.”

The 42-year-old Allen, who has been out of a job since late September when he was fired by the Raiders four games into his third season, is the third person to interview since the Giants fired Perry Fewell last week.

Washington defensive backs coach Raheem Morris and former Bills defensive line coach (and former Giants linebacker) Pepper Johnson have been interviewed, though Morris is not believed to be in the running.

Allen wa s the secondary coach in New Orleans from 2008-10, which included the Saints’ 2009 Super Bowl season. In 2011 , as the Denver defensive coordinator, the Broncos defense ranked 18th in the NFL.

He was the coach of the Raiders from 2012 until an 0-4 start to this season got him fired on Sept. 29, replaced by former Jets offensive coordinator Tony Sparano on an apparent interim basis.