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Giants coaching candidates: 8 options if New York fires Brian Daboll

jacob camenker, usa today
·8-min read

The New York Giants are staring down the barrel of another losing season and are set to face a difficult question about their franchise's future during the 2025 NFL offseason.

Should the team give the duo of head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen another season to fix things, or is it time for new leadership?

Daboll took the Giants to the playoffs in his first year as head coach with a 9-7-1 record and was named the AP Coach of the Year for his efforts. Since then, New York hasn't performed nearly as well, and quarterback Daniel Jones – who Schoen rewarded with a four-year, $160 million contract after the 2022 NFL season – has particularly struggled.

That has led to much speculation that Daboll and Schoen could get the boot, even despite Giants owner John Mara calling for patience with the two.

"Obviously, we're all very disappointed with where we are right now," Mara said on Oct. 27 at the debut of an NFL Films production about his father, Wellington Mara, per CBS Sports. "But I'm going to say one thing: We are not making any changes this season and I do not anticipate making any changes in the offseason either."

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Of course, NFL owners are notorious for changing course. Mara could decide to part with Daboll if he views him as part of the problem, even if the more likely scenario is making Jones the scapegoat for the Giants' offensive struggles.

Who could the Giants target if Mara does decide to pull the plug on the Daboll era? There are plenty of candidates out there who would likely intrigue the Giants, including one of the greatest coaches in NFL history.

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick watches from the sideline as they take on the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough on Sep 17, 2023.
New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick watches from the sideline as they take on the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough on Sep 17, 2023.

Bill Belichick

Belichick seems likely to seek an NFL return in 2025 after spending the 2024 season working a variety of media jobs, and the Giants are a natural fit for him. The long-time Patriots coach has deep ties to the Giants organization, spending the 1979-90 seasons with the team and eventually becoming its defensive coordinator under Bill Parcells.

Could that be enough to convince Mara to hire Belichick? Maybe, especially considering the Giants owner's admitted preference for long-term coaching stability. The only question is whether Belichick, 72, would get the most out of a roster still seeking its franchise quarterback or if the veteran coach would produce a record similar to the one he has had during his career without Tom Brady (85-102).

Ben Johnson

Johnson has been one of the hottest coaching candidates on the block in recent hiring cycles. He was rumored to be among the top candidates for several jobs in 2024 before deciding to return to Detroit.

"I like what we've built here, starting with ownership, the head coach, the GM on down," Johnson explained of his decision, per NFL.com. "We have a great group of guys in the locker room and I want to reap the rewards with them a little bit longer."

That said, Johnson figures to leave the Lions at some point. The 38-year-old could just be waiting for the right opportunity to do so. Perhaps that would come in New York, where Johnson could focus on bringing a young quarterback along similarly to Jared Goff, who has blossomed into one of the NFL's most accurate quarterbacks under Johnson's tutelage.

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Bobby Slowik

Slowik, 37, is another one of the up-and-coming, offensive-minded coaching candidates who figures to eventually get a job. He helped C.J. Stroud produce one of the best rookie seasons in NFL history – Stroud completed 63.9% of his passes for 4,108 yards, 23 touchdowns and five interceptions – in his first season as offensive coordinator. Things haven't been quite as smooth in 2024, but Slowik has helped the Texans get to a 6-3 record despite injuries to the team's top two receivers.

Slowik was a part of Washington's legendary 2013 staff under Mike Shanahan and has recently worked under two successful NFL head coaches, Kyle Shanahan and DeMeco Ryans. The Giants should see upside with Slowik and could view him as the ideal candidate to develop the quarterback they select to be Jones' successor.

Kliff Kingsbury

The downside to hiring Kingsbury is that he already had a stint as the Arizona Cardinals head coach. He achieved modest success with an 11-6 season in 2021 but saw the wheels fall off quickly, ending his four-year stint with a 28-37-1 record and twice having offenses that ranked below league-average in scoring and yards per game.

The upside? Kingsbury is just 45 and is considered a bright offensive mind. He has also built an offense that allowed Jayden Daniels to transition seamlessly into the NFL, as the No. 2 overall pick has posted a 7-2 record while completing 71.5% of his passes for 1,945 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions.

Kingsbury's spread offense is considered to be quarterback-friendly, especially for young quarterbacks transitioning into the NFL. If the Giants draft a young signal-caller, they may view Kingsbury as the ideal candidate to build a functioning offense around him, especially early in the quarterback's career. That, plus the prospect of poaching Kingsbury from a division rival, should put him in play for the Giants.

Todd Monken

Monken, 58, returned to the NFL in 2023 after spending three years at Georgia and transformed the Ravens' offense from a run-heavy attack to a balanced offense. The 58-year-old likes using a vertical passing attack, and that has suited playmakers like Lamar Jackson, Zay Flowers and Mark Andrews well. His ability to incorporate – and rejuvenate – Derrick Henry in 2024 has allowed Baltimore to sport one of the NFL's best offenses as it looks to make a Super Bowl run.

The Giants have a few weapons, chiefly Malik Nabers, who could be great fits in Monken's offense. He might even be able to get the most out 2023 third-round speedster Jalin Hyatt, so his ability to build a quality passing game around New York's next quarterback would make him an instant candidate for the Giants' head coaching position.

Liam Coen

Many believed Baker Mayfield would take a step back in 2024 after losing offensive coordinator Dave Canales, who was hired to coach the Carolina Panthers. Instead, Mayfield has continued to play at a high level, leading the NFL with 23 passing touchdowns through nine weeks and looking every part of a quality NFL starter.

Coen deserves a lot of credit for that. The 38-year-old Sean McVay disciple has brought principles from the Rams coach's highly successful offense to the Buccaneers, and the pre-snap motion has allowed Mayfield to have wide-open receivers consistently throughout the season. That offensive scheme should make Coen a hot commodity and will make him an appealing option for the G-Men.

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Brian Flores

Flores is one of the brightest defensive minds in the game and has turned Minnesota's defense from a laughingstock to an opportunistic, takeaway machine. His defensive scheme – which involves blitzing often and walking many players up to the line of scrimmage before dropping some into coverage – is difficult for quarterbacks to read, and he does a great job fitting his most talented players into roles that fit their skill sets.

The Giants would probably drool at the thought of adding Flores, 43, to coach a stop unit that already has the makings of a top-tier defense in Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Dexter Lawrence. That's part of why they interviewed the former Miami Dolphins coach, who posted a 24-25 record during his three years in Miami, in 2022 before they hired Daboll.

The only question is whether New York would be willing to hire a defensive-minded coach as it looks to replace Jones or if they prefer to go the offensive route.

Jesse Minter

Minter is another young, defensive coach who has done yeoman's work with the Chargers defense. In 2024, the Chargers ranked 28th in yards allowed and 24th in points allowed. This year, they ranked eighth in yards allowed and have the NFL's best scoring defense entering Week 10.

How has Minter done it? The 41-year-old simply has gotten players like Khalil Mack, Joey Bosa, Derwin James and more to play up to their talent levels. The Chargers always had a strong-looking defense on paper, but it never came together under Brandon Staley.

Nonetheless, NFL teams will take notice of what Minter has accomplished, especially considering the success of his college defense at Michigan under Jim Harbaugh. That should earn Minter some interviews, and the Giants should at least kick the tires on one of the better young defensive minds in the game.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will Giants fire Brian Daboll? Best coaching candidates to replace him