Coughlin, 69, met with Giants co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch on Monday and said he informed them it was in the best interest of the franchise for him to step down.
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“I still believe Jerry Reese is the right guy going forward, ” Mara said.
The Tom Coughlin era with the New York Giants is over but on Tuesday the likely Hall of Fame coach left the door open to coaching again in the National Football League. We’ve been friends a long time, and I’m sad, but I’m happy because it’s a new adventure.
“While the two Super Bowl trophies are incredible accomplishments, the unbreakable bond between coach and player is what defines me”, Coughlin said. Coughlin was a wide receivers coach while Belichick was the defensive coordinator.
The loss to the Eagles brought to an end a disappointing campaign for the Giants, who finished the season with a record of 6-10.
Coughlin surprised no one in saying his coaching career may not be over.
Mara also revealed the team would like Coughlin to come back in an advisory role. He was the Jaguars’ coach in the franchise’s first eight years of existence, leading them to the 1996 AFC championship game in the team’s second season. After a fourth-straight season missing the playoffs, the writing was on the wall and a change needed to be made. They won the division the following season and shocked the football world by knocking off the then-undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl in February 2008. Especially not in 2007, when New England entered the Super Bowl XLII on the cusp of the NFL’s first 19-0 season. Still, no team in the NFC East won more games between 2005 and 2012 – the best range of Coughlin’s Giants tenure.
He leaves the podium much the same way after every single Wednesday Afternoon Tea for the last 12 years.
Mara didn’t disguise the fact that the roster was littered with less than stellar players, but despite the personnel shortcomings, Coughlin became the odd man out.
Coughlin also delivered an impassioned message for Giants quarterback Eli Manning, who was visibly moved to tears by his coach’s words.
“He definitely has not failed these players”, Manning said of Coughlin. “It’s up to us now to turn that around and get back to where I think we should be”. “He’s a great coach”.
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“Winning, losing, playing hard, playing well, doing it for each other, winning the right way; winning the right way is a very, very important thing to me and all of our coaches”, Coughlin said. “It could have been better, but I appreciate everything he’s done for this team and for me personally”. Mara said Coughlin agreed to consider the offer. Their defense was among the league’s worst. “We scored a lot of points, we were competitive in most of the games, and I thought we had a great game plan”. “He’s been everything you could ever ask for in a head coach”.
