HERE’S WHY GIANTS OWNERS SHOULD PULL THE PLUG ON JOE JUDGE NOW!
By Lewis Gould
New York Giants owners John Mara and Steve Tisch must have the patience of Job.
At least head coach Joe Judge had better hope so.
The way the Giants (4-11) are playing since quarterback Daniel Jones was hurt late last month is not going to help his cause. He has a 10-21 record with two games left this season. The team is riding a four-game losing streak without Jones and the losses have gotten uglier and uglier.
The worst was the 34-10 setback at Philadelphia on Sunday. The Giants were competitive on one side of the ball for a half because Pat Graham’s unit held the Eagles to three points. The second half was a blowout, thanks in part to mistakes by the offense and special teams, and failures by the tired defense.
It’s hard to say whether Judge deserves a third year. Like most coaches he works very hard. He has added good people on the roster and eliminated issues within the locker room. He just hasn’t won enough. Injuries in 2021, especially on the offensive line, didn’t help.
The Giants can’t keep turning over head coaches, though. They now have had five straight losing seasons. Ben McAdoo got thems to the playoffs in 2016 and was fired the next year. Pat Shurmur lasted two seasons. Judge is finishing up his second.
Hired in late 2017, general manager Dave Gettleman is likely going to take a fall after this season. Judge is question mark — and he is not talking about it.
“I think you come back every week and you go to work, and that doesn’t mean it’s not frustrations within it, whether you’re winning or losing,” Judge said.
He said the addiction to coaching is working with the players and finding ways to have success. It involves showing players their mistakes and teaching them how to correct them. He insists it’s a building process.
“Actually, the adrenaline, the kick you really have as a coach is that high you get from working with the team and being able to share in their success,” the 39-year-old said. “That’s really what you live for, what a coach lives for.”
The question is can Mara and Tisch live with it another year?
