The New York Giants suffered a brutal 28-6 season-opening home loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 8 and then turned a potential victory into a 21-18 defeat at the Washington Commanders on Sunday afternoon.
For a piece published on Monday, NFL analyst and reporter Darryl Slater of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com wrote that Giants head coach Brian Daboll could "get canned before this season ends" if things go from bad to worse for the club over the next handful of months.
"That is now a legitimate question because it sure looks like Daboll faces an uphill battle to even keep his job for 2025," Slater explained. "Co-owner John Mara wanted to see 'significant improvement' from this team in 2024 coming off a 6-11 mess. So much for that."
NFL insider Connor Hughes of SNY reported before Week 1 that Mara had not "completely promised" that Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen will hold onto their jobs through next offseason. While Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated said ahead of this past weekend that he thought "Giants ownership really likes [Daboll and Schoen] and wants to stay the course with them," Breer offered that take before Daboll's decision to not elevate kicker Jude McAtamney from the practice squad cost his club Sunday after an already hobbled Graham Gano became unavailable for the remainder of the game following the opening kickoff.
"They’re the laughingstock of the NFL partly because they’re inventing ways to lose," Slater said about the Giants. "On Sunday in Washington, they became just the second team in NFL history (and first since 1989) to lose while scoring three touchdowns and allowing none."
The Giants likely will be betting underdogs for upcoming games against the Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks, Cincinnati Bengals and Philadelphia Eagles. New York entering Week 8 at 0-7 feels very realistic, and one can only guess how Mara would react to such a development.
Slater suggested that offensive coordinator Mike Kafka could serve as interim head coach if Mara decides an in-season change is needed. The Giants blocked the Seahawks from interviewing Kafka regarding Seattle's offensive coordinator job this past offseason before New York elevated him to the position of assistant head coach.
Many assume Mara will at least reach out to former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick if the Giants end Week 18 with a losing record. Belichick earned his first two career Super Bowl rings serving as an assistant and later as defensive coordinator with the Giants from 1979-90 and is expected to interview for head-coaching positions in January.
