EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Giants dismissed head coach Brian Daboll on Monday following yet another collapse from a double-digit lead in Sunday’s loss at Chicago.
“The last few seasons have fallen well short of expectations, and we’ve failed to deliver for this franchise,” co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch said in a joint statement. “We share our fans’ frustration and are committed to putting a far better product on the field.”
Assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka will take over as interim head coach. Kafka has been a finalist for several head coaching vacancies in each of the past two cycles.
General manager Joe Schoen will retain his position and oversee the search for Daboll’s permanent replacement.
“We believe Joe has built a strong young core of talent, and we’re excited to see it grow,” Mara said. “The results over the past three years, however, have not met anyone’s expectations. We own that completely and are determined to deliver the success our fans deserve.”
Tisch added: “These decisions are never easy, and John and I don’t make them lightly, but we are convinced this is the right move now to help us turn the page.”
No additional changes to the coaching staff are planned at this time, sources told ESPN.
The Giants (2-8) have again won just two of their first ten games for the third consecutive season and stand 11-33 since the start of 2023.
Asked Sunday if he feared for his job amid the record, Daboll replied, “I’m just focused on the guys in that locker room.”
Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart also sustained a concussion in the Giants’ 24-20 defeat to the Bears—his fourth concussion evaluation of the year, counting preseason.
Daboll earned 2022 Coach of the Year honors after guiding the Giants to a surprising 9-7-1 record and a playoff victory in Minnesota. The wheels have come off since, despite Daboll being the primary advocate for drafting Dart. The first-rounder has produced 17 total touchdowns across his first seven starts.
Yet the Giants continue to lose, surrendering leads in ways rarely seen this year. New York squandered double-digit advantages in four road defeats.
Sunday marked the second time this season they blew a 10-plus-point edge with fewer than four minutes left—the only team since the 1970 merger to do so twice in one year, alongside the 2004 Seahawks.
Daboll finished 20-40-1 as head coach, his .336 winning percentage worse than predecessors Ben McAdoo and Ray Perkins.
The fiery coach endured a turbulent four-year tenure marked by a bitter parting with defensive coordinator Wink Martindale after 2023 and a $100,000 fine this season for storming the medical tent during Dart’s concussion evaluation.
At one point, Schoen monitored the headsets to assess Daboll’s sideline communication. Daboll once hurled a tablet at ex-quarterback Daniel Jones and overhauled much of his staff over the past two years.
Despite a 3-14 record last season, both Daboll and Schoen were retained—only to land on the hot seat when owner Mara declared post-season that far better results were expected.
“I know exactly how many games we’ve won, and the results are nowhere near acceptable,” Mara said then. “They’ll have to improve dramatically if we’re going to reach Year [5].”
Daboll arrived after four seasons as Buffalo’s offensive coordinator, where he played a key role in Josh Allen’s rise. He also spent much of his career in multiple assistant roles under Bill Belichick in New England.
Bills coach Sean McDermott was asked Monday whether the team might contact Daboll about a possible return to the staff.
“Right now, that’s not on the table at all,” he said.
