Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Malik Nabers called the Giants “soft as f—.”
Dexter Lawrence echoed this, adding that they got the ‘s—” beaten out of them on Sunday.
Brian Burns said “that’s a–” when asked about their lopsided defeat.
Jermaine Eluemunor said he doesn’t think everybody is “giving 100%.”
The 2024 Giants sound like they’ve given up on coach Brian Daboll. Sunday’s 30-7 loss to the Buccaneers only fanned the flames.
BUY GIANTS TICKETS: STUBHUB, VIVID SEATS, TICKETMASTER
For starters, Daboll’s gameplan stunk. The Giants, now 2-9, were outgained 290 to 45 at the end of the first half and looked flat with new starter Tommy DeVito, who took over for the recently-cut Daniel Jones on Monday, now at the helm.
Perhaps the most headscratching decision he made was not targeting stud rookie wideout Malik Nabers in the first half at all. Naturally, the 2024 first-round pick was pissed about this after the game.
“I start getting the ball at 30-0. What do you want me to do?” said Nabers, who finished the game with 64 yards on six catches.
Asked why he thought he wasn’t targeted, Nabers pointed the finger back to Daboll: “I don’t know. Talk to Dabes about that.”
Clearly, tensions are high in the locker room — and that falls squarely on the coach.
Why, for instance, did Daboll not properly explain the dip in targets to Nabers, the future of his team’s offense?
Why did he add to the clown-show by letting the Jones drama linger all week?
Why did he choose DeVito — who, again, looked terrible — over Drew Lock, who was the backup all year?
Daboll clearly has an issue communicating important issues to his team. And with six long weeks to go, things are only going to get worse as they face playoff teams like the Ravens, Falcons and Eagles.
Heck, forget the playoff teams, Daboll and Co. are going to struggle against the four-win Cowboys — whom they play on Thanksgiving — and Saints the next two weeks at this rate.
Point being: The Giants locker room already seems like it’s hanging by a thread. If Daboll can’t regain control fast, he’ll completely lose them by the end of the season — which is bad news, no matter what happens to him after the season.
If co-owner John Mara — who gave Daboll an unprompted vote of confidence in late October — fires him, then the Giants have to start from square one yet again. That might not go over well with team leaders like Lawrence, Burns and others.
But If he sticks with Daboll, even as the Giants continue to lose, players might hold onto their resentment of him, which could spill into next season. Hanging onto a coach that has lost the room would surely lead to another dismal record.
It’s a serious dilemma. And while the Giants might be better off losing to get a better draft pick, they also risk creating a culture of suck — which teams often struggle to break out of.
Bottom line: Mara better do his due dilligence in the locker room to determine whether Daboll is the guy or not before making yet another emotional, rash decision.
Judging by Sunday’s postgame comments, it doesn’t sound like he is.
Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting us with a subscription.
Ryan Novozinsky may be reached at [email protected]. You can follow him on X @ryannovo62.