Following an ugly end to the 2024 season, the New York Giants were expected to fire general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll. If not Schoen, then most certainly Daboll.
Instead, Giants co-owner John Mara opted to keep the regime intact while simultaneously expressing his displeasure.
"Now that our season is over, we felt it necessary to make this statement. Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll will continue in their respective roles with the organization," Mara wrote in a statement.
"As disappointing as the results of the season have been, Steve (Tisch) and I remain confident in the process that Joe and Brian have implemented and their vision for our team."
Leading up to that announcement, reports suggested Schoen and Daboll would be evaluated separately. They weren't but are now apparently operating separately.
Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports that more than at any other point in their tenure, Schoen and Daboll are "working as separate entities."
Mara publicly blamed the previous regime’s failures on a lack of communication and collaboration between GM Dave Gettleman and head coach Joe Judge. Schoen and Daboll projected a united front and worked as a complementary pairing early on, having arrived together from Buffalo in the first place.
Gradually, however, that dynamic has shifted to the point that Schoen and Daboll now more than ever are working as separate entities, sources say.
This offseason, there have been some notable changes. Many will point to Daboll's lack of presence at certain Pro Days, but that isn't necessarily outside of his norm. However, he and Schoen holding separate press conferences when they have traditionally held joint press conferences, is.
Moreover, Leonard reports that there "was some hope" from members of the front office and personnel department that Daboll would get the boot.
Daboll noticeably then met the media alone on Jan. 6, standing behind a lonely podium inside the Giants’ practice facility on the turf. Schoen followed that with a solo press conference of his own in the team’s indoor auditorium, seated on stage behind a table.
The new optics of those press conferences were not lost on anyone inside or outside the building who understands how the organization works.
Some sources have said, in fact, that there was some hope on the front office/personnel side of having the opportunity to reset with a new coaching staff after the Giants’ 3-14 season. But with Daboll retained, a once mutual marriage now feels more like a forced one.
Whether Schoen and Daboll are working in tandem or not, and whether their union is forced or not, they both share a common goal: Winning. Without that, they'll both find themselves on the street at this time next year.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wire: Giants' Joe Schoen, Brian Daboll are 'working as separate entities'
