After missing the postseason for the third consecutive season in '14, NFL Giants President & CEO John Mara called the team's campaign an “embarrassment” and "admitted Tuesday that at one point he almost cleaned house," according to Ebenezer Samuel of the N.Y. DAILY NEWS. Instead, Mara is giving GM Jerry Reese and coach Tom Coughlin one more season, "making it clear ... that in 2015, losing is not an option." Mara "did not hide his disdain for the way things went" in '14, but the Giants closed the year by winning three of their final four games, and Mara "eventually softened." He said that Coughlin’s two Super Bowl titles "played a 'big part' in the decision to keep the coach, and highlighted several other factors." Meanwhile, Samuel notes Reese has "assembled an impressive stable of young talent," headed by rookie WR Odell Beckham Jr. Mara said that he "noticed how players never once stopped trusting Coughlin." The organization "has long had a policy of not allowing its coaches to work into the final years of their contracts, preventing them from reaching lame-duck status." But Coughlin’s deal is set to expire after the '15 season, and Mara "seemed in no rush to let the 68-year-old coach get comfortable" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 12/31). Mara said that he "had not discussed with Coughlin how much longer Coughlin wanted to coach the Giants." Mara: “Right now, I think Tom gives us the best chance to win going forward. How long that is going to last for, I don’t know. He is going to be our coach next year.” Asked if he had made a decision on how long he would coach, Coughlin said, “No, I don’t have an answer. Because there’s so many factors involved.” Coughlin mentioned his health and the health of his wife, Judy, as "potential considerations moving forward, but he did not seem in any hurry to retire." He said that he "had never considered not coming back" for '15 (N.Y. TIMES, 12/31).
GIVING AN ULTIMATUM? Mara said the team's 25-24 loss to the Jaguars on Nov. 30 was the "low point" of the season. On Long Island, Tom Rock writes it was "likely the closest Mara has ever come to losing faith in those he employs to run the team." But one month later to the day, he "announced the exact opposite." Mara said that he "still has faith" in Coughlin and Reese. Asked if next season will be a "win or else" proposition for a lot of people, Mara said, "I don't think that's an unfair statement" (NEWSDAY, 12/31). In N.Y., Steve Serby writes "everyone is truly on notice" in '15 -- starting with Coughlin, and even extending to QB Eli Manning "to a much lesser degree." Mara "has been angry at the end of each of the last three seasons, and at this point, you better believe he is mad as hell and he isn’t going to take it anymore" (N.Y. POST, 12/31).
TOAST OF THE TOWN: In N.Y., Mike Lupica writes the organization has "very classy people," starting with Mara, "as classy an owner as there is." Lupica: "As much as John Mara talked about wanting to fire everybody after an embarrassing loss to the Jaguars, I don’t believe either Coughlin or Reese was ever in real trouble. It is not the way the Giants do business." In so many ways, the Giants "are the model franchise" of N.Y. and New Jersey sports, but "they have now had two losing seasons in a row." Mara "is the best" owner the area has at this time, and "is so much better at this than" Jets Owner Woody Johnson. Mara "stays with his guys," while Johnson "goes looking for new guys again." But Mara’s circumstances "are suddenly similar to Woody’s in this one big way: This is on him now" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 12/31). Also in N.Y., Mike Vaccaro writes Mara "is the gold standard" in the area. His is "by far the most professional, the most poised public face and voice of any of the men who presently own franchises" in N.Y. and New Jersey, and it "isn’t close." He decided to "keep the Coughlin-Reese team intact for at least one more run, and this is why that makes sense: we have seen what they are capable of when there is gas in the tank and positive vibes in the engine" (N.Y. POST, 12/31).
