Tim Lewis isn't gone, according to Coughlin -- the coach said he'll decide this week who stays and who goes, and he said that the decision is entirely his.
Not much exciting from his conference call, other than him saying that he has changed over his three seasons and continues to do. And -- shocker!! -- he wished that the players who went to the media with their gripes had kept things in-house.
One of those players, Jeremy Shockey, gave this quote today through the team:
"Coach Coughlin deserves to be the head coach of the New York Giants. I’m glad he’s coming back and I have told a lot of people over the past couple days that I hope he comes back. He and coach Pope, all they want is for me to be the best player I can be. I know they know how hard I work at it, and I know how hard they work to get the most out of me. We all need to do a better job together to get ready for another season. Everyone on this team, no matter what anyone from the outside says, understands that nothing is more important to Coach Coughlin than winning and that’s what you want from your coach.”
Michael Strahan had a similar statement:
"I’m excited to hear that Coach Coughlin will be returning this season. He has led us to back to back playoff appearances for the first time in my 14-year career. Unfortunately, because of my foot injury, I wasn’t able to be much of a help down the stretch this season. I know the perception is that he is unapproachable and distant from his players, but that’s not the case. I had some of my best conversations with him this season, and he showed me how much he cared about me as a person and as a player when I went to him and pleaded with him to let me play against Dallas and then against Philadelphia, and he knew the smart thing to do was to let me heal up some more because I wasn’t ready. I look forward to a healthy return for the ’07 season and helping the Giants organization make a third straight playoff appearance with a better outcome than the past two seasons. Tom is the man to lead us to do just that."
So there you go... Basically, everything is exactly the same as yesterday, but the coach has a 1-year extension.
Comments (13)
I NEVER though Coughlin was the problem, I think his understudies are and need to be replaced (Special Teams, QB and Defensive coaches)
One of the most promising things I have noticed lately has been the maturation of Shockey. He is turning out to be the leader of this offense.
Arthur: Thanks for the great job you did on the Blog this season. 2 questions. 1) will the blog continue in the "off-season"? and 2) when will the decesion be made on the GM?
Hey Arthur, two things...these statements by Shock and Strahan were made through the Giants organization - are we to believe these were actual statements? and second, Coughlin did a fair job with the hand he was dealt but Tim Lewis HAS TO GO!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kevin Gilbride should be banned from Giants Stadium. This guy shouldn't be anywhere near Eli Manning. He has done NOTHING to warrant staying on in any capacity. The regression of Eli should be enough to send Gilbride packing not giving him a promotion to offensive coordinator
Lewis will be gone, they just won't ruin his other opportunities by announcing it before he interviews. Unfortunately, Gilbride will probably be rewarded for failing with Eli by being made OC.
Andrew, I think TC is trying to help Lewis. He is interviewing for HC positions. Based on performance I assume it is to fulfill minority interview quotas, but you never know.
I have to agree, Arthur, that you really did a great job with the blog this year and have separated yourself from the other beat writers in New York. Congrats.
The following is an excerpt from an email exchange I had with two of my die-hard Giants fan friends in discussing the Coughlin situation. I think it needs to be said, so I hope you let me do it here.
wrote:
Considering we could NEVER score within the 5 yard line, were the most penalized team in NFL, blew timeouts like cheap hookers in manhattan, and his freakin puss face on the sidelines on every play...I am counting the days till he is out of here. To me, he is not a good leader of men.
wrote:
I think we need a change as well and should replace Coughlin, however, he has gotten ringing endorsements from the players in the papers and on the news in this area over the last few days. Players like Antonio Pierce, Jeremy Shockey, Plaxico, have all said they want him back.
wrote:
Those "ringing endorsements" for Coughlin were simply last-ditch, after-the-fact efforts of mostly selfish players pretending to be about the team... not to mention the fact they probably knew they were going to have to play for him for another year. Not that Mr. Gestopo really even has a doghouse these days, an opinion that I will discuss a little further down.
Burress really doesn't give two sh*ts about anyone or anything but himself. As much as he is a weapon the Giants need, he is a security blanket for Eli Manning that is actually aiding his regression. And Burress simply doesn't want to do the things that will make the team better like working out up here in the offseason; he'll rely on his physical talent to make millions but will NEVER be a champion.
Even Tiki Barber kind of looks bad the way he never backed Coughlin, instead choosing to backhandedly say bad things about him but never just coming out and saying he was a jerk. If there's one thing that's obvious to me, it's that all of the praise finally got to Tiki's head -- not in the way he treats people, but in the way he views himself. I read a good letter to the editor in SI today from someone saying that a job in the media will always be there for Tiki, but an ability to rush for 1,800 yards a season is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity he's throwing away.
In my book, Jeremy Shockey can say whatever he wants because he is one of the only players on the team who always gives 110 percent and who cares as much about winning as we do. How do I know this? After the Dallas loss at home, he had a little internal conniption fit right in front of me and two or three other reporters while getting dressed at his locker before the actual interview began. Picture me trying to tame my own temper after a bad loss. It was funny and spoke to his mental instability but also spoke of his hatred of losing... especially to Romo, his "Homo" coach and the Cowbags.
Even though I think keeping Coughlin is the best move for now, it is simply the lesser of two evils for me. As you said, Rich, he IS NOT a leader of men... in fact, his relationship -- or lack thereof -- kind of reminds me of the article that Tom Verducci wrote about A-Rod in SI recently. Like A-Rod, Coughlin really doesn't have any friends on the team, no one he can confide in and no one who wants to see him succeed. Parcells was a hard-ass, but players loved to see happiness on his face after a win because they knew how devastated he was after a loss.
The worst thing about Major Tom is the fact he is nothing that he proclaims to be. A disciplinarian wouldn't take the B.S. from players that he has; he would simply punish them by sitting them down and embarrassing them to the whole world on Sunday. He obviously knows the players are more popular than him and chose to take care of these internal issues passively so as to not create a stir. If he created a stir, the players would probably respect him more. Call it his fear of being judged. Call it his lack of gumption. I'll call it a popular decision from an unpopular coach.
Anyhow, let's hope he grows some balls in the offseason now that he knows he's pretty much a lame
duck coach unless this thing gets turned around.
"The regression of Eli should be enough to send Gilbride packing not giving him a promotion to offensive coordinator"
I agree. You have to assume Gilbride must be held partially responsible for Eli's problems. I also believe that everything flows from the top (i.e.: TC)...
2007 is going to be an interesting year...
Coughlin has not been everything he was supposed to be, but lets also consider what he has done:
Led injury ravaged teams to the playoffs 2 years in a row.
Turned Tiki Barber from a good, but fumble prone, RB into one of the elite RB's in all of football.
Those items are not inconsequential. Has he brought along Eli? No. Has he cured the discipline and injury problems that plagued the team when he took over for Fassel? No. But how can he be blamed for injuries? The weight for those problems should fall on the training staff. Stupid players should be benched for committing stupid penalties, but when the team is torn apart with injuries and the players committing the penalties are back-ups for the back-ups (as Bob Whitfield was) who do you propose playing in his stead?
According to WFAN Tim Lewis is out. Dom Capers is the leading candidate to get the job, which means we should expect to see the team come out in a 3-4 D next season. That is the formation he used with both the Panthers and Texans
I wonder how much of Manning's lack of success this year has to do with having only one good receiver (Plexico). Also their play calling is very predictable. Anyone notice if first and 10 is an unsuccessful pass, second down is almost always a run?
I found myself watching the game and knowing about 75% of the time whether the play was going to be a run or pass.
Abe, you're 100% right. I think Coughlin probably is helping Lewis. But Lewis' stock as dropped considerably. Any chance he lands another job this year period?