Brian Daboll’s case is easier. He is a year removed from being the NFL’s Coach of the Year.
His team went 6-11 this year, and a guy who used to hold his job always cautioned “you are what your record says you are,” but the Giants were also playing much better at the end of the year than they were at the start, and it didn’t take much imagination (or more than a couple of plays) to turn six wins into nine — in which case there’d have been a legit shot they’d have squeezed into the playoffs.
If Daboll is lately being portrayed in certain circles as a sideline tyrant whose temper renders him a cross between late-Indiana Bob Knight and the drill sergeant from “Full Metal Jacket” … well, a little anger never seemed to adversely affect Vince Lombardi or Bill Parcells.
The Giants have no intention of moving on from Kafka.
If he gets a head coaching gig, of course he will depart. It will be interesting to see what happens if there is outside interest in hiring Kafka as an offensive coordinator
and if Kafka is piqued by that interest.
There were times this past season when Daboll got more involved in the offense and the play-calling, and Daboll did not state unequivocally that Kafka will continue to call the plays in 2024.
“Those are conversations we’ll have here over the next few months, what direction we’ll go and we’ll make those decisions as we do a full evaluation,’’ Daboll said after the Giants wrapped up their 6-11 season.
Kafka could view an opportunity with another team as beneficial to his coaching career.
Or he could return and wait and see what Daboll has in store for himYou likely know the biggest names headed into the 2024 NFL Draft, but which prospects might fly a bit under the radar?
