Despite beating the Washington Redskins 17-14 and earning their 10th win of the season, the Giants still missed the playoffs after Green Bay defeated Chicago to clinch the final Wild Card berth. And as much as missing the playoffs was a self-inflicted wound for the Giants – after all, those losses to the Eagles and Packers in Weeks 15 and 16 were practically unforgivable – the Giants did what they almost always do: they decided to stay the course. Team owner John Mara’s comments:
“I’m proud of how the players battled through the injuries,” said Mara. “I think that is a testament to the coach. In this society, everybody wants to fire the coach all the time. The Yankees get knocked off in the playoffs, everybody wants to fire the manager.
“Well, we don’t do that here. He’s going to be our coach. Because I believe in the guy, I believe in stability, you can’t build anything if you are constantly making changes and firing people. That is not our culture and it is just not what we believe in. We know this guy is a good coach and we want him to lead us into next season.”
There are a lot of things wrong with the Giants. Their secondary has been a weak spot for nearly 20 consecutive seasons. They haven’t drafted an impact linebacker since unearthing Jessie Armstead in the 8th round of the 1993 draft. The offensive line has shown considerable age and attrition since reaching their high-water mark midway through the 2008 season. And, most notably, their quarterback is owed $97.5M over the next six years despite being overrated, turnover-prone and perennially disappointing. Yet, despite it all, the Giants get one thing right: they generally make smart coaching hires and they stick with coaches that do a good job.
I’m not the passionate Giants fan I was when I was a little boy but I truly appreciate that my team has smart and thoughtful owners. When I look around the NFL, very few organizations are as stable as the Giants. I can be proud of that.
“I’m proud of how the players battled through the injuries,” said Mara. “I think that is a testament to the coach. In this society, everybody wants to fire the coach all the time. The Yankees get knocked off in the playoffs, everybody wants to fire the manager.
“Well, we don’t do that here. He’s going to be our coach. Because I believe in the guy, I believe in stability, you can’t build anything if you are constantly making changes and firing people. That is not our culture and it is just not what we believe in. We know this guy is a good coach and we want him to lead us into next season.”
There are a lot of things wrong with the Giants. Their secondary has been a weak spot for nearly 20 consecutive seasons. They haven’t drafted an impact linebacker since unearthing Jessie Armstead in the 8th round of the 1993 draft. The offensive line has shown considerable age and attrition since reaching their high-water mark midway through the 2008 season. And, most notably, their quarterback is owed $97.5M over the next six years despite being overrated, turnover-prone and perennially disappointing. Yet, despite it all, the Giants get one thing right: they generally make smart coaching hires and they stick with coaches that do a good job.
I’m not the passionate Giants fan I was when I was a little boy but I truly appreciate that my team has smart and thoughtful owners. When I look around the NFL, very few organizations are as stable as the Giants. I can be proud of that.
2 comments:
I agree about keeping Coughlin. He's done a great job, outside of this season's mid-year collapse. I think the Giants could have beaten a number of teams in the NFC playoff pool this year. Next year will be interesting.
Good work keeping Coughlin. I do wonder how many coaches would have been fired if not for looming lock out issues but it's a good move nonetheless.... (the same can't be said about keeping Del Rio. umm why?)
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