Tom Coughlin, Jerry Reese On Hot Seat?

FRIDAY, 8:06am: A source familiar with the Giants’ thinking tells Steve Serby of the New York Post that Coughlin’s seat is hotter than Reese’s. The GM is expected to be safe even if New York misses the playoffs this season, according to Selby’s source.

THURSDAY, 2:51pm: Although the Giants head into Week 13 tied for first place in the NFC East, they have lost back-to-back games and has a sub-.500 record, having failed to pull away with the division when they had the chance. The season has been a frustrating one for co-owner Steve Tisch, who “made it clear” that ownership considers the home stretch of the season “win-or-else time” for the franchise, according to Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post.

“Under Coach [Tom] Coughlin, we’re fighters,” Tisch said. “[But] sometimes we fight harder than the previous week. We’ve got to stay focused and go out there as a team.”

When asked if the final five games of the season were particularly important for Coughlin and Jerry Reese, Tisch didn’t exactly offer a ringing vote of confidence for either the head coach or the general manager, according to Hubbuch. Although Tisch said the discussion on Coughlin and Reese wasn’t one to have today, he noted, “I certainly don’t want to disappoint our fans as we get into the last month of Giants football,” adding that he “would not be happy” if the team’s season ended on January 3.

Coughlin has been the Giants’ head coach since the 2004 season, and Reese has handled GM duties since 2007, so the club won’t make any hasty decisions on their respective futures. Still, New York has missed the playoffs for the last three seasons, finishing below .500 in each of the last two, and ownership didn’t deny last winter that 2015 would be a make-or-break year for the franchise’s brain trust.

Another losing season without a postseason berth would be particularly difficult to swallow, given how bad the Giants’ NFC East rivals have been. With five weeks left in the regular season, New York still has plenty of time to make a late-season run and win the East, and should even have a little margin for error. But if the Giants lose three or four more games and finish outside the playoff picture, the team could be in the market for a new coach or GM, or both.

Coughlin is currently under contract through the 2016 season.

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