Can Mike Kafka Become Giants Full-Time HC? GM Schoen Gives Update After Daboll Firing

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen told reporters at his bye week press conference on Tuesday that interim head coach Mike Kafka will get a "real look" to become the team's full-time head coach.

The Giants are in the market for a new head coach after parting ways with Brian Daboll after a 2-8 start this season. Daboll went 20-40-1 over his three-plus years in charge.

Kafka, who was the team's offensive coordinator, assumed the head coaching role and has since gone 0-3 capped by a 33-15 road loss to the New England Patriots on Monday.

This was an ugly game to say the least, as the Giants fell behind 30-7 at halftime and were never truly in this one.

▶️  Full Giants-Patriots Recap

05:21

It was a far cry from the 2-11 Giants' first two games under Kafka, when the team fought hard to the end but ultimately lost 27-20 vs. the 8-3-1 Green Bay Packers and 34-27 (in overtime) at the 7-5 Detroit Lions.

It might be an uphill climb for Kafka to get the job at this point, even though he can make a good impression over the Giants' last four games.

At this time, though, Schoen said that team is doing everything it can to support Kafka while also keeping an eye on 2026 and beyond in hopes of finding a new coach.

The Giants do have some exciting, young players, such as quarterback Jaxson Dart and wide receiver Malik Nabers (who is unfortunately out for the season with a torn ACL) as well as veterans who have excelled, including left tackle Andrew Thomas and edge-rusher Brian Burns. Schoen believes the core of talent will be attractive for coaches.

However, the Giants' record is what it is at 2-11, and Big Blue is now 11-36 since the beginning of the 2023 season and 5-25 in their last 30 games. New York is also the only NFL team to not win a road game this year at 0-8 and is in the midst of a seven-game losing streak.

Simply put, the roster isn't good enough right now, which directs attention at Schoen, who has been the team's GM since 2022.

Schoen remained as general manager when the team fired Daboll. The two arrived from the Buffalo Bills in back-to-back weeks in January 2022. First, Schoen, the ex-Bills assistant general manager, came aboard. Daboll, the team's offensive coordinator, soon followed.

When Daboll was let go, Giants owners John Mara and Steve Tisch put out a statement confirming Schoen would stay as general manager and lead the team's coaching search.

"We feel like Joe has assembled a good young nucleus of talent, and we look forward to its development," Mara said. "Unfortunately, the results over the past three years have not been what any of us want. We take full responsibility for those results and look forward to the kind of success our fans expect."

Schoen admitted, though, that a two-win season is "not good enough." In addition, he also said ownership is evaluating football operations after the season.

Despite the pessimism surrounding the franchise of late and the possibility of not having their own general manager to work with, Schoen believes that there will be interest in the head coaching gig.

The Giants have now missed the playoffs in 12 of 14 seasons. This was supposed to be a year of marked improvement after a disastrous 3-14 campaign in 2024, especially after the team loaded up on the defensive side of the ball via free agency and the draft, but that hasn't happened.

Now the Giants are left with even more questions than answers as the team slogs through another lost campaign.

The end of the season can't come soon enough, but it'll be five weeks before that happens, starting with a bye before a four-game closing stretch beginning with a home matchup with the Washington Commanders on Dec. 14.