It’s been a busy week for the New York Giants.
First the Giants lost 24-20 to the Chicago Bears, falling to 2-8 for the third straight season. The next day saw Brian Daboll fired as head coach, and OC and assistant head coach Mike Kafka elevated to interim head coach. Kafka then shook up the Giants’ quarterback depth chart, naming Jameis Winston the QB2 and starter if Jaxson Dart was unable to clear the concussion protocol in time.
This brings us back to the foundational question: Was firing Brian Daboll the right move for the Giants?
There’ve been calls for Shane Bowen’s job dating back to the the Giants’ historic collapse against the Denver Broncos. Daboll, however, stood behind his defensive coordinator and refused to move on. Instead, Daboll was fired after the Giants blew their fourth double-digit lead in the fourth quarter — and rookie sensation Jaxson Dart was injured.
On the other hand, this does cast some uncertainty on Dart’s future. He’ll have a new head coach in 2026 and likely a new offensive coordinator with a new offense. That’s worked out well for Caleb Williams, but Dart was very much “Daboll’s Guy”. Would enduring another season with Daboll be worth it for Dart being developed by the coach who was the driving force behind drafting him?
The other aspect of Daboll being fired is that Mike Kafka will finally get his shot to show the NFL that he has what it takes to be a head coach in the NFL. Kafka has interviewed for head coaching positions each off-season since being hired in 2022, and been a finalist in each coaching cycle as well. Yet each time he’s just missed out on a job and returned to the Giants. His star has risen rapidly since retiring form playing in 2016, but he’s seemingly stalled out.
Do you think that Kafka will succeed as the Giants’ interim head coach? That might not mean racking up wins, but at least remaining competitive against good teams through the second half of the season would be positive for the Giants. Likewise, continuing to develop Dart while also playing with greater accountability and attention to detail would be a definite win.
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