NFL analyst: 'No coach has a hotter seat' than New York Giants' Brian Daboll

USA Today

a day ago

After the New York Giants finished the 2024 season with a 3-14 record, co-owner John Mara wasted no time releasing a statement that general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll would be retained for the 2025 season.
Mara then reconfirmed the decision at a press conference later that day.
"So, you all got the statement that we issued this morning. I met with Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll Friday afternoon for several hours. After which I had a conversation with Steve Tisch and we spoke some more over the weekend," Mara said, "We came to the decision that staying with both of them is the best course of action for us right now. I think in Brian's case, he was the Coach of the Year two years ago. That didn't disappear all of a sudden. I still believe he can do that again.
"And in Joe's case, I thought we had an outstanding draft class this year. I thought we had a really good free agency period. I really like the staff that he's put together and built. I think that they're the right two guys to lead us going forward. I understand, believe me, that that's not going to be the most popular decision in Giant land. But we believe it's the right decision for us going forward."
Mara was asked if he was sticking with Schoen and Daboll one more year because it was easier than starting over again.
"I think it's a combination of things," he said. "It's a belief in them, number one. But, number two, I think when you start over, you really set yourselves back. When you have a belief in the two individuals that are leading the organization, you have to have the patience to stay with it. Again, if we're standing here, if I'm standing here a year from now and we're having the same conversation, I'll take the heat for it. But we still believe that it's the right decision going forward."
Mara understands that the 9-25 record over the past two seasons was an entire institutional failure. It was he who greenlit the double-down on quarterback Daniel Jones. As we all know, when a team gets the quarterback wrong, it can set them back years.
That leads us to this summer. Schoen has already done his part. He added some depth, talent, and experience via free agency and then nailed the draft for the second straight year. Daboll and his staff have a lot to work with this year. No more excuses.
Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports believes Daboll is at the top of the NFL's hot seat rankings for head coaches.
No coach has a hotter seat entering 2025 than Brian Daboll in New York. In the three years he's been on the job, the Giants are 18-32-1, and they're coming off a 3-14 season last year. At the end of the 2024 campaign, it felt like Daboll may be on the brink of getting the axe, but ownership decided to give him and general manager Joe Schoen another shot in 2025.
Poor quarterback play has been the Achilles heel for the Giants over Daboll's tenure, and the organization did make efforts this offseason to rectify it. It signed Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston in free agency and traded up into the back end of the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft to select Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart.
Wilson is currently positioned to be the Week 1 starter, but Daboll's fate may rest on Dart, who impressed during the offseason program. If Dart takes over at some point during the season and shows flashes, that could be enough to save Daboll.
However, he'll need to survive an early gauntlet to possibly get to that point. Before the Week 14 bye, seven of their first 12 opponents are all coming off playoff appearances last year -- and the non-playoff teams are the Cowboys (road), Saints (road), 49ers (home), Bears (road) and Patriots (road). It's hard to imagine New York putting together anything close to a .500 record, which would put Daboll at serious risk of an in-season firing.
Prediction: Fired
Fixing the quarterback situation was the top priority this offseason, and Schoen attacked it from all angles and with all styles. The moves could save a slew of coaches their jobs.
Wilson is a steady hand who has a Super Bowl ring and 10 Pro Bowl nods. He is a master deep thrower, an element that has been lacking on this team for years.
Winston keeps things light, but he is a talented wild-card of a player who can be electric at times. A former Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall draft pick, he brings a trove of options and experience to the quarterback room.
Tommy DeVito, the local folk hero whose 15 minutes of fame are up, is concentrating more on his career than ever. The Giants wisely kept him around as he is the only one in the quarterback room who's run this offense.
Then, there is rookie Jaxson Dart. He is being groomed to be the Giants' next franchise quarterback. Dart is taking cues from all of the other quarterbacks in the room. His trajectory has been planned as methodically slow, but don't tell him that.
Daboll should be able to extricate himself and Schoen from the hot seat with a better showing this season. The Giants are better all around and could be closer to a .500 team than people think. Last year, they lost eight games by one score or less.