The New York Giants have unquestionably been one of the biggest disappointments of the 2023 season. After making it into the playoffs and beating the Vikings last year, New York has been unable to put anything together on the offensive side of the ball this season. The defense was supposed to be one of the strongest parts of the team but all of a sudden, we’re in Week 14 and the Giants are sitting at 28th in the NFL, far below what was originally expected. The question a lot of people are asking is this; are the Giants planning on making a coaching change after the season?
Giants Coaching Woes have been a Distraction
After a lot of discussion about a major rift between New York Head Coach Brian Daboll and his defensive coordinator Wink Martindale has occurred over the past couple months, tensions appear to be cooling as we head into colder weather. Martindale made a statement to reporters ahead of the Week 14 matchup against the Green Bay Packers:
“We’re fine,” Martindale spoke of his relationship with Daboll during a Friday news conference, as reported by Ryan Dunleavy from the New York Post. “It’s the same thing that it was last year. It’s just different because we were winning more games.
The melodrama began when NFL Insider Jay Glazer reported in November that the two coaches were in such a “bad place” when the team was 3-8 that the two would almost certainly be parting ways after the season. Glazer also reported that it had been discussed for Daboll to fire Martindale as the defense continued to perform poorly. The Giants then defeated the New England Patriots 10-7 and then proceeded to the bye week.
“When you’re 4-8 instead of 8-4, things like that come up,” Martindale stated, per Darryl Slater of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. “…There’s nothing you can do when someone says something. There’s nothing that’s happened [negatively between Martindale and Daboll] that way. We’re building something here. I think you’ve just got to stay focused on that. Every time my key card works, it’s not like I go, ‘Yeah!’ I’ll [instead] be like, ‘Hey, this son of a [gun] doesn’t work anymore.” Martindale joked. “I don’t make that decision. So I can’t answer that question.””
Based on his attempt to mend the relationship, it certainly appears that Martindale would like to stay in New York heading into 2024. Martindale performed excellently last season as the New York defense was one of the strongest units in the NFL after the emergence of defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence.
While the defense has certainly not played well, most of the struggles with New York should be attributed to the poor performance and then injury of franchise quarterback Daniel Jones. New York has been absolutely pitiful in the passing game over the season which has also been exacerbated by New Yorks continued stubbornness to put any effort to improve their receiver room. As this team struggles its way through December, the team will need to completely reboot the offense via free agency and the upcoming NFL Draft.
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