New York Giants Undertake Spring Cleaning As Bill Sheridan Is Fired

The Giants locker room isn't a place for the faint hearted.  Tom Coughlin's face is blood red, and believe me it's not because of the cold weather.

Today Bill Sheridan was awarded his New Year gift to begin 2010.  The first to feel the heat, Bill Sheridan was fired after his first season as the Giants defensive coordinator. 

Tom Coughlin had hinted that Sheridan's performance was going to be evaluated in the upcoming days, no one expected it to be a day after the Giants final game of the season though.  Sheridan was told the news early this afternoon by Coughlin, and a career that had only had just begun had ended suddenly.

Although Tom Coughlin looks like the bad guy in this situation, it is merely a mirage to cover up John Mara's doings in this incident. 

Ever since the Giants season finished a dismal 8-8, Mara has been hellbent on getting this team back on track. 

That's fair enough though right?

Absolutely, but when your firing your veteran coaches, maybe you are rushing into things just a little to early.

Sure, the Giants are ranked fairly low when it comes to defense this season.  However Sheridan is a former Super Bowl winning coach when he coached the Giants linebackers,and knows what he is doing when it comes to defensive strategies.

Is it really fair to fire a guy a day into the off season who has given your team a Lombardi Trophy, and  many years of tireless efforts?

Well I guess so, as long as the Giants can back it up though.

For anyone out there that is surprised that Bill Sheridan has been fired, don't take it as a one off thing.  Expect to see many more firings in the Giants staff, as they are looking to get back to winning ways.

One thing that John Mara has highlighted well is that the Giants were outscored 85-16 in the last two games of the 2009 season.  These numbers are un-New York like, if anything, they are more New York Jet like.

Defensively the Giants haven't been top notch either.  Giving up 427 points on the season, it would be unfair to really keep Bill Sheridan really.  Another alarming stat that Giants fans should keep an eye on, is the fact that they are third from last in points given up defensively.  The Detroit Lions and St. Louis Rams are the two below.

24 hours after the Giants loss to the Minnesota Vikings, he reflected on the Giants season.

"I am disappointed in everybody, in everything, I am unhappy with everyone. It's just not acceptable to perform like that. There are 8-8 seasons and there are 8-8 seasons, but this one felt like more like 2-14 to me."

From what started out as undefeated season and a spot among the NFL's elite teams such as New Orleans, Minnesota, Indianapolis and San Diego, the Giants made a quick exit from glory and went down the path of a struggling team.

Fortunately 2-14 didn't happen. The Giants still have some hope.

Eli Manning coming off a more than decent year with a career high 27 touchdowns and a quarterback rating of 93.1, gives Giants fans nationwide some hope for the future.

One thing the Giants are missing is the smash mouth running game that they are used to.  From 83.8 yards per fame last season, to 55.7 this season, things are notably different in the running faculty.

Jacobs has lost his explosiveness, and almost his strength.  From what once was a guy that would pile through defenders like a bulldozer, has now turned into a back that is only good for pounding for one or two yard gains.

Maybe firing Bill Sheridan was a positive step, we'll have to wait and see.  The Giants defense will now have to adjust to a new coach, and maybe a new system.  Although, that is not the Giants only problem heading into the off season.