Brian Daboll

Brian Daboll Fallout: Giants, Kafka, Schoen

November 11th, 2025 at 10:25pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Giants fired head coach Brian Daboll on Monday after his team blew a double-digit fourth-quarter lead in Sunday’s loss to the Bears.

The move has major ramifications for the short- and long-term future of the franchise. The biggest immediate impact is the installment of offensive coordinator Mike Kafka as the interim head coach. He will retain play-calling duties, per ESPN’s Jordan Raanan, who noted that the Giants offense has been notably better with Kafka calling plays than with Daboll.

Kafka will likely be evaluated as a candidate for the permanent head coaching gig over the rest of the season. Rookie Jaxson Dart has looked like a potential franchise quarterback thus far, so Kafka’s ability to develop the first-round pick will be a crucial part of his audition.

Daboll was rumored to be on the hot seat for a while, so the Giants’ decision was not a complete surprise. Players were aware of the team’s frustration and knew it was possible, if not likely, that Daboll would be removed as a result of his squad’s latest collapse.

The close ties between Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen – who spent three years together in Buffalo before joining the Giants in the same offseason – have already stirred speculation that Schoen could also be on the way out. The Giants are retaining him for now, indicating that he and Daboll are not necessarily a package deal.

A separate decision on Schoen will likely come at the end of the season, according to The Athletic’s Ian O’Connor, partially because he will play a major role in organizing the search process for the Giants’ next head coach. He was heavily involved in the hiring process that brought Daboll to New York in 2022, along with the team’s principal owners John Mara and Steve Tisch, as well as senior personnel consultant (and John Mara’s brother), Chris Mara. John Mara is currently undergoing treatment for cancer; while he stated an intention to continue in his duties, moving on from Schoen would have doubled the team’s search for new leadership while eliminating a key part of that effort.

Schoen may also stick around because the Giants have already invested in his vision for their internal operations. He restructured their approach to the draft and incorporated data analytics into scouting, roster management, and week-to-week game-planning. Ownership was encouraged by this progress, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, so they may not want to move on from Schoen after already implementing many of his ideas.

Giants Fire HC Brian Daboll

November 10th, 2025 at 10:59pm CST by Adam La Rose

Brian Daboll‘s time in New York has come to an end. The fourth-year head coach has been fired, as first reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The news is now official, per a team announcement.

Offensive coordinator Mike Kafka will take over as interim head coach, Mike Garafolo and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network report. Today’s news comes one day after the Giants dropped to 2-8 for the third straight season under Daboll. The team has blown double-digit leads four times during road losses this year, adding further to the speculation a change could be made before the end of the campaign.

“We spoke this morning about the direction of our franchise on the field, and we have decided that, at this time, it is in our best interest to make a change at the head coaching position,” a statement from owners John Mara and Steve Tisch reads in part. “The past few seasons have been nothing short of disappointing, and we have not met our expectations for this franchise. We understand the frustrations of our fans, and we will work to deliver a significantly improved product.”

Entering the 2025 season, Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen were widely known to be on the hot seat. The selection of first-round quarterback Jaxson Dart seemed to pave the way for one or both to be retained depending on how his development progressed. Dart has shown flashes when on the field, but the rookie suffered a concussion yesterday after being evaluated for one for the fourth different time dating back to the preseason. Criticism regarding the Giants’ handling of Dart has increased given the frequency of hits he has taken, with much of it being directed Daboll’s way.

No other changes are taking place at this point, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports. That means Schoen as well as defensive coordinator Shane Bowen – whose job security has also been questioned through much of the campaign – are safe for the time being. Changes on those fronts will be worth watching for after the year, but for now attention will turn to Kafka — the Giants’ second interim HC (after Steve Spagnuolo in 2017) this century — and his ability to guide the Giants to something of a rebound.

The Daboll-Schoen tandem was hired with high expectations after its success with the Bills. Things got off to a notable start, with the Giants going 9-7-1 in 2022. New York won a wild-card game and Daboll took home Coach of the Year honors. Since then, however, very little has gone according to plan. The Giants are on their way to a third straight season well below .500. Overall, Daboll’s tenure will end with a record of 20-40-1. Tension between he and Schoen was reported this past spring, and other internal matters like the less-than-cordial departure of former DC Don Martindale will leave an unwanted legacy in Daboll’s case.

The 50-year-old has worked as an offensive coordinator with four different NFL teams; he also held that role at Alabama for one year prior to joining the Bills. Daboll’s work in developing Josh Allen made him an attractive candidate on the head coaching market, and he joined the Giants with the hopes of maximizing Daniel Jones‘ talent. Both before and after Jones inked a four-year, $160MM pact, that did not prove to be the case.

Jones was cut midway through last season, one in which Saquon Barkley – who joined the Eagles in free agency upon playing out the franchise tag – enjoyed a record-breaking debut campaign. In the aftermath of the commitment made by Daboll and Schoen backfiring, many pointed to this past offseason as a logical point for at least one to be replaced. Immediately after the campaign, though, Mara confirmed both would be retained.

It nevertheless became clear at that point Mara’s patience was running thin. The draft provided the Giants with a potential new franchise passer in Dart, and as expected he quickly took over starting duties after Russell Wilson opened the year atop the depth chart. Daboll unilaterally made the decision to bench Wilson and replace him with Dart, a move many viewed as an attempt to avoid a firing. Schoen and Co. endorsed the switch, one whose impact cannot fully be seen given the season-ending injuries suffered by Malik Nabers and Cam Skattebo.

Kafka will be tasked with taking charge of a shorthanded offensive unit the rest of the way. This will mark his first head coaching opportunity at any level. Kafka, 38, saw his role with the Giants vary over time but he has once again handled play-calling duties in 2025. It will be interesting to see if that remains the case over the closing weeks of the campaign.

Kafka has been lined to outside HC interest in the past, and his stock for the 2026 hiring cycle will of course be greatly influenced by his performances over the next two months. The Giants have not been able to find stability on the sidelines since the end of the Tom Coughlin era. Including Kafka, the team has employed six different head coaches since 2016.

Mara and the Giants generally avoid making in-season moves such as this. Indeed, Kafka is only the fourth coach to hold the interim title in franchise history. If he earns the full-time gig, New York will not be in the market for another reset on the sidelines. Failing that, however, the Giants will join the Titans (and, no doubt, other teams) in seeking out a new hire. Daboll should not be expected to receive a second head coaching look in the near future based on how his first stint went, but he could be sought after once more as a coordinator.

Bills Staying With OC Joe Brady; Brian Daboll Reunion Not Under Consideration

November 10th, 2025 at 10:56pm CST by Connor Byrne

Bills head coach Sean McDermott has worked with four different offensive coordinators since taking the reins in 2017. He’s not ready to move on to a fifth. McDermott said Monday that Joe Brady will remain the team’s offensive coordinator, per Andrew Siciliano.

Questions about Brady’s status came after one of McDermott’s former O-coordinators, Brian Daboll, lost his head coaching job with the Giants on Monday. That could make him a fit to return to Buffalo’s offensive staff in some capacity, but McDermott shot down the possibility.

“That’s not under any kind of consideration,” McDermott said when asked about a potential reunion with Daboll.

Daboll, who attended high school outside of Buffalo and went to college in nearby Rochester, was the Bills’ O-coordinator from 2018-21. He’s often credited with aiding in the development of quarterback Josh Allen, a high-risk first-round pick in 2018 who has evolved into an elite signal-caller.

The Allen era got off to a slow start, but the Bills’ Daboll-coached offense finished top five in both points and yards in 2020 and ’21. Daboll then left for the Giants, with whom he went 20-40-1 over three-plus seasons.

With Daboll on his way to the Giants, the Bills promoted passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey as his replacement. They rolled out a stellar offense again in Year 1 under Dorsey, but they fired him in November 2023. Although the Bills ranked a respectable eighth in points and yards at the time, they were coming off two straight losses and sporting a mediocre 5-5 record. In McDermott’s estimation, that was enough to ax Dorsey.

The Bills handed the offensive keys to Brady, then their QBs coach, on an interim basis. The move sparked a 6-1 finish and a third straight AFC East title, and the offense improved to fourth in yards and sixth in points. Brady earned a full-time promotion as a result. While the Bills fell to 10th in yards last year, the first season of the post-Stefon Diggs era, they scored the second-most points in the league. Allen took home MVP honors.

Brady’s performance in 2024 was enough for him to earn head coaching consideration last winter. New Orleans was among the interested teams, but with the Saints having the last opening remaining in late January, Brady bowed out of the race and stayed in Buffalo.

The 36-year-old Brady is again in control of an offense that has been a resounding statistical success this season. The Bills sit second in the league in yards and sixth in points, though inquiries about his job security come on the heels of a brutal loss to the Dolphins in Week 10.

The Bills dropped to 6-3 in a 30-13 romp in Miami on Sunday. A Dolphins defense depleted by injuries and the trade of Jaelan Phillips to the Eagles held the Bills scoreless over the first three quarters of the game. The Bills committed three costly turnovers on the Dolphins’ side of the field, including an end zone interception by Allen.

It was apparent yet again that the Bills are lacking at wide receiver. General manager Brandon Beane didn’t make a trade to address the issue before the Nov. 4 deadline, but he reportedly attempted to acquire Dolphins receiver Jaylen Waddle. He stayed put and wound up burning the Bills for five catches, 84 yards, and a touchdown on Sunday.

After a dismal all-around showing in Miami, the Bills will face a stiffer test at home against the NFC South-leading Buccaneers in Week 11. Brady will remain in charge of the offense as the Bills aim for a bounce-back effort.

Giants Were Hesitant To Trade Stars Due To Job Security

November 5th, 2025 at 10:13pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Despite rumblings about a few of their players, the Giants had a quiet trade deadline.

Trading Pro Bowl defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence never felt realistic. Teams seemed unlikely to pony up a first-round pick for edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux, who has just 2.5 sacks this season. And the Giants could not find takers on offensive lineman Evan Neal or wide receiver Jalin Hyatt, two players on expiring deals they were open to moving.

Uncertainty around the team’s future also lent itself to standing pat on Tuesday, per Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post. The Giants’ current regime desperately needs to show proof-of-concept with their current vision for the walker. Jettisoning two of their top young defenders could make the team look bad enough down the stretch to threaten the jobs of general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll.

However, the Giants are still realistic about their current standing and need to add talent in the offseason. They were only interested in players under contract through at least 2026, as trading draft picks for rentals would not better the team’s future.

There’s a careful balance to be struck there. At 2-6, the Giants may be content with a losing season if it means a top draft pick. Given the scrutiny on Schoen and Daboll, they may not be intentionally tanking, but adding a rental could help them win an extra game or two without boosting their overall playoff chances. At that point, the extra victories may not be worth the resulting drop in the draft order.

In a way, though, the Giants’ quiet deadline suggests that Schoen and Daboll believe that they have one more year in charge, but their jobs are not secure beyond that. Investing heavily in this year would suggest that they are on the hot seat right now, while trading Lawrence or Thibodeaux for future picks would indicate that they are committed to a long-term rebuild with Dart under center.

Instead, it seems like New York will be approaching the 2026 offseason with the hope of improving their roster around Dart and contending for an NFC playoff spot to show they’re capable of even more.

Giants, Brian Daboll, Cam Skattebo Fined For Concussion Protocol Violations

October 24th, 2025 at 10:12pm CST by Adam La Rose

In the wake of their Week 6 game, the Giants have been the subject of an investigation over their handling of the league’s concussion protocol. That process has now concluded with discipline being handed down.

The organization has been fined $200K, per a joint NFL-NFLPA announcement. In addition, head coach Brian Daboll has been issued a $100K fine. Running back Cam Skattebo has also received a financial penalty; the fourth-round rookie has been fined $15K.

During the Giants’ Thursday night contest against the Eagles, quarterback Jaxson Dart was taken to the medical tent to be evaluated for a potential concussion. Daboll and Skattebo entered the tent to check on Dart, with Daboll also engaging in a heated discussion with the team’s medical staff. In the immediate aftermath of the game, it was widely believed discipline of some kind would be forthcoming. Today’s news thus comes as little surprise.

“While the parties agreed that Coach Daboll’s and Mr. Skattebo’s actions had no actual impact on the exam or the care that Mr. Dart received, their conduct was inconsistent with and demonstrated a disregard for the concussion protocol’s requirements and therefore constituted a violation,” the announcement reads in part.

Dart was able to return to the game and then played every snap last week against the Broncos. He is in line to remain the Giants’ starter moving forward barring any missed time due to injury. Both Daboll and Skattebo issued apologies for their actions following the incident, and the announcement notes “immediate remedial steps” have been taken to ensure a repeat of this situation will not take place moving forward.

Giants Not Considering Coaching Changes

October 20th, 2025 at 10:34pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen is under fire after his unit allowed 33 points in the fourth quarter to blow a 19-point lead in Sunday’s loss to the Broncos.

Star edge rusher Brian Burns expressed his frustration with Bowen’s late-game play-calling as he walked into the locker room (via Bleacher Report’s James Palmer), and New York’s defense as a whole has struggled in their first seven games this season. The Giants are among the bottom 10 teams in points, yards, and yards per play allowed, with plenty of trouble against the run and the pass.

However, head coach Brian Daboll said on Monday (via The Athletic’s Charlotte Carroll) that he is not considering any immediate changes to his coaching staff and plans to keep play-calling duties with his coordinators.

“We all got to do a better job,” Daboll said. “Starts with me, and there’s plenty of opportunities to finish that game the way we wanted to. We didn’t get the job done.”

Both Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen were thought to be on the hot seat entering the 2025 season, but the emergence of rookie Jaxson Dart as a potential franchise quarterback may give them a longer leash. The Giants’ ownership (and fans) may still demand accountability if they have a third-straight losing season, especially if their final record resembles last year’s 3-14 debacle. The offense has improved, but the defense seems to have regressed. If that continues, it could be Bowen who finds himself out of a job in 2026, but he is safe for now.

NFL, NFLPA Investigating Giants’ Handling Of Jaxson Dart Concussion Protocol

October 10th, 2025 at 5:05pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The NFL is investigating “the application of concussion protocol” in regards to Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart during Thursday night’s game against the Eagles, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

The review will be conducted jointly with the NFLPA as required by the league’s collective bargaining agreement.

Giants head coach Brian Daboll was seen attempting to enter the blue medical tent and having an animated conversation with the team’s medical staff as they evaluated Dart. Both Daboll and the Giants could face discipline a result of the incident, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

Daboll apologized for the incident after the game and said (via SNY) that he was not trying to rush or otherwise influence Dart’s concussion protocol. Instead, he claimed that he was trying to find out if Dart was “good or not” as he considered calling a timeout and attempting a fourth down conversion, a point he reiterated on Friday.

After news of the league’s investigation became public, the Giants released a statement from team president and co-owner John Mara released a statement that backed Daboll’s version of events while also noting that “the appearance of going to the tent is inappropriate.”

“We have protocols in place as a league to ensure player safety and we need to allow our medical staff to execute those protocols without interference,” the statement continued. “We understand the situation is under review by the NFL and the NFLPA, and obviously we will cooperate fully.”

Giants running back Cam Skattebo also went to the medical tent to check on Dart during the game. On Friday, he said (via SNY) that he was trying to “calm down” his teammate knowing that the rookie quarterback “wants to be back on the field.”

“We know we have to go through protocol…to make sure we can get back on the field,” Skattebo added.

Given the increasing national attention on the long-term impact of concussions on football players, the NFL cannot afford to take these incidents lightly. Any hint of a team not following concussion protocol could be a major issue for the league from both a liability and public relations standpoint. The Dolphins’ handling of Tua Tagovailoa‘s concussion in 2022 spurred a similar investigation that found that the protocol was followed but needed to be improved.

Giants Brass Did Not Oppose Jaxson Dart Promotion; Latest On HC Brian Daboll

September 28th, 2025 at 10:45pm CST by Rory Parks

A report earlier this week noted that Giants head coach Brian Daboll did not consult his coaching staff or team execs in making a seminal starting quarterback switch from Russell Wilson to first-round rookie Jaxson Dart. It would be easy to read that report and infer some sort of disconnect between Daboll and his fellow coaches and/or team brass, but apparently that is not the case.

As Paul Schwartz of the New York Post (subscription required) observes, depth chart configurations are always the HC’s responsibility, and in this instance, neither GM Joe Schoen nor co-owner John Mara offered any dissent to Daboll’s decision. Nor did they force the move, per Dianna Russini of The Athletic (subscription required).

According to Russini, some objections to the change were raised, but she does not specify who made those objections. And now, she says, the entire organization is backing the head coach and his young signal-caller, though Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News, who believes Daboll has summoned Dart in an effort to save his own job, describes the locker room’s response as “tepid” (while acknowledging the players support Dart personally).

Russini says several players on both sides of the ball, including team captains, contacted Dart as soon as the decision was announced to let him know he has their support. Likewise, third-stringer Jameis Winston has spent hours with Dart and ran through game scripts with him after practice until the rookie mastered them. And although Wilson is reportedly now considered a trade candidate — which Dan Duggan of The Athletic is skeptical of, given Wilson’s 2025 performance and his limited market this offseason — Schwartz says the organization believes Dart will benefit from continuing to be around the 36-year-old passer, who handled his demotion with the type of maturity the team expected.

Interestingly, Russini says the Giants considered naming Dart the starter after their Week 1 loss to the Commanders, and Schwartz says Dart would have started from the jump if New York did not have a veteran option with Wilson’s pedigree on the roster. While Schoen had previously voiced his hope that Wilson would stay in the QB1 role for some time, that was because such a development would have meant Wilson was playing well enough to merit the job.

Of course, Wilson’s performance did not prevent Daboll, whose job security is tenuous at best, from inserting the player he pushed for in the draft into the starting lineup. Despite a gaudy stat line in a Week 2 loss to the Cowboys – which was aided in large part by Dallas’ porous secondary – Schwartz says Wilson’s inability to consistently find the endzone was one of the triggers for his benching, along with the team’s belief that he was too quick to scramble instead of going through his progressions when he felt pressure.

Schwartz adds that a fourth quarter sequence at the end of Big Blue’s Week 3 loss to the Chiefs may have been Wilson’s final straw. In a first-and-goal situation at Kansas City’s 4-yard line, Wilson was flagged for intentional grounding on first down, ran for four yards on second down, and made non-competitive throws on third and fourth down.

Regardless of the impetus for the decision, Dart is now tasked with saving the Giants’ season and, perhaps, the New York futures of Daboll and Schoen. Even if he cannot do that — indeed, Leonard believes Daboll could be fired if his troops do not play well against the Chargers in Week 4 — he can still cement his status as the team’s long-term option at quarterback.

Brian Daboll Did Not Consult Coaching Staff, Management In Jaxson Dart Decision

September 25th, 2025 at 11:42pm CST by Adam La Rose

One of the key questions surrounding the Giants leading up to the 2025 season concerned the quarterback position. Russell Wilson handled starting duties through the first three weeks, but the expected transition to rookie Jaxson Dart has officially taken place.

When first speaking about the move, head coach Brian Daboll made it clear Dart is viewed as New York’s QB1 the rest of the way. That comes as little surprise, especially given the inherent link between the promise Dart could show upon taking the field and the job security of Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen. Notably, Daboll has since doubled down on the fact he acted alone in making the switch.

“That’s the direction I wanted to go, and that’s the direction we’re going to go,” the fourth-year coach said (via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post). “There are good conversations we had. Those are private, but ultimately it comes down to me.”

Daboll specified those conversations took place with players, but not with the other members of his coaching staff (h/t SNY’s Connor Hughes). Collaboration has long been a talking point during the Schoen-Daboll era, but the absence of it in this case has drawn attention. Considering the magnitude of Dart – a passer the current regime drafted after inheriting Daniel Jones – taking over as it pertains to potential changes on the sidelines and/or in the front office, it is indeed surprising this call was made unilaterally.

Just before the Giants’ Week 2 game, a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter stated the team was in no hurry to bench Wilson. The Super Bowl winner then threw for 450 yards in a high-scoring overtime loss, a game which seemed to earn him a longer look atop the depth chart. However, a primetime loss to the Chiefs (punctuated by more poor play in the red zone) led to Dart getting the nod for Week 4.

As Hughes notes, the Schefter report did not originate from Daboll. The embattled HC did not specify that Schoen and/or members of ownership were the source of the report, but Hughes adds that is the (rather strong) implication. This represents another layer to the Dart decision, one which will surely go down as a defining one for the current iteration of the Giants based on his success upon taking on starting duties.

The 0-3 Giants will host the 3-0 Chargers on Sunday. That will of course prove to be a challenge for Dart and the offense, a unit which will continue to see OC Mike Kafka handle play-calling duties. Given the specific nature of the decision to change quarterbacks, scrutiny on Daboll will no doubt increase quickly if things do not go according to plan.

HC Brian Daboll, DC Shane Bowen On Hot Seats?

September 19th, 2025 at 10:23pm CST by Ely Allen

Coming into the season, rumors were already hinting that Giants head coach Brian Daboll‘s seat was starting to heat up with pressure to win. An 0-2 start to the year has done nothing to cool things off, and according to Tony Pauline of sportskeeda, defensive coordinator Shane Bowen may be starting to feel the heat, as well. Pauline’s sources claim that both coaches are “hanging on by a thread.”

Daboll started his career as a head coach on a strong note, going 9-7-1 in 2022 — good for 3rd in the NFC East and a wild card spot in the playoffs, where his team defeated a 13-4 Vikings squad before falling to the Eagles. The next year, a season-ending injury to Daniel Jones derailed New York’s offense, while the defense, despite a high efficiency on third downs, struggled as the sixth-worst unit in the NFL. The resulting 6-11 record led the Giants and then-defensive coordinator Wink Martindale to part ways.

Bowen came in to replace Martindale, fresh off three seasons in the same role in Tennessee. In his first season with Big Blue last year, Bowen’s defense showed improvement, ranking 21st in scoring allowed and eighth in passing yards allowed. In 2025 so far, no defense has given up more yards through their first two games. If things don’t change soon, both Bowen and Daboll could find themselves in danger of becoming the first coaching casualties of the young season.

So, how might things change? Pauline’s sources point to the quarterback position. Unfortunately for starting passer Russell Wilson, despite his 450-yard Week 2 performance, the fate of his starting role could be tied to the security of Daboll and Bowen’s jobs.

Per Pauline, if an expected rout by the Chiefs takes place this weekend at the Meadowlands, rookie first-round quarterback Jaxson Dart may find himself running on the first-team offense as soon as next weekend, when the Chargers come to town. If the presumed bad result against the Chiefs doesn’t boost Dart to the starting role in time for Los Angeles, Pauline’s sources claim Dart should be starting in time for a Week 5 trip to New Orleans at the latest.

If a change at quarterback is as guaranteed as they seem to be implying, it may behoove the team to make the move sooner, rather than later. While the Saints would, perhaps, be a softer test for Dart, the stretch of games immediately following sees matchups with the Eagles (twice), Broncos, 49ers, Bears, Packers, and Lions, who all could make life tough for a first-year starter. With that in mind, it may be smart to get Dart incorporated into the starting lineup with as much time to get up to speed as possible.

Of course, this is all speculation at the moment. Currently, Daboll’s fate is in the hands of Wilson, who led the Steelers to a playoff appearance just last year. Things haven’t gone according to plan so far, but Daboll may view Wilson’s experience as his best chance at turning around the season. If things continue to go poorly, though, showing potential for improvement behind a younger arm may be his only chance at saving his job. As for Bowen, his job may be fully dependent on the defense’s ability to turn things around against a grueling upcoming slate of games.

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