NEW YORK — The New York Giants fired coach Brian Daboll on Monday, according to two people with knowledge of the situation, moving on from him midway through his fourth season after they dropped to 2-8 with a loss at Chicago.
The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the move had not been announced. Offensive coordinator Mike Kafka was named as the interim replacement, the people told AP.
The move by ownership and general manager Joe Schoen was made a day after the Giants blew a late lead and lost 24-20 to the Bears. Schoen and defensive coordinator Shane Bowen remained in their roles.
New York has lost four in a row since upsetting defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia at home in prime time early last month.
This is just the Giants’ third mid-season coaching change since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger and first since 2017, when Ben McAdoo and general manager Jerry Reese were fired following a 2-10 start. Daboll went 20-40-1 in his first head-coaching job in the league. He led the Giants to the playoffs in his first season and was named coach of the year, but has gone 11-33 since.
Daboll’s .336 winning percentage ranks 154th out of 166 coaches with 50-plus games since 1970. The former Buffalo offensive coordinator had faced increased pressure about his job security in recent weeks.
“Look, you put everything you’ve got into it,” Daboll said. “You look at the things that aren’t where they need to be and you try to fix them. Whether that’s changing things on the schedule, whether that’s different periods of practice, whether that’s changing little parts of the scheme, again, that’s where we’re at. We’re at where we’re at.”
During the 2022-23 season — his first as head coach — Daboll lead the team to a wild-card victory. But that season, with a record of 9-7-1, was his lone winning season with the Big Blue.
Kafka takes over after serving as Daboll’s offensive coordinator all four seasons. The 38-year-old has been involved in head coaching circles the past few seasons, earning interviews with the Saints and Bears last off-season.
— With files from Sportsnet Staff
