What to do with Coach Coughlin

When last season ended, I was one of the many Giants fans calling for the team to fire Tom Coughlin. The team was going nowhere, the star running back was retiring because of the coach, and the franchise quarterback was not realizing his potential like we all desperately need him to.

It seemed like the logical and sensible thing to do would be to fire Tom Coughlin and make a run at a proven winner like Bill Cowher, Dennis Green, Jimmy Johnson or dare I mention, the Tuna. Why wouldn't one of these guys want to take over this team? Look at all the talent the Giants have. They have a ton of great players on both sides of the ball.

But it all meant nothing when new GM Jerry Reese went ahead and gave Coughlin a two year extension. There was no reason to keep a coach that the players have publicly complained about, blamed losses on and just all out dissed. At the same time, Reese had to look out and see who was available and interested and at the time, there were no real viable options. So at the end of the day, the lack of any decent replacement candidates is what saved Coughlin's job.

The Giants made no real significant offseason signings so with the loss of Tiki Barber, this talented yet disgruntled team was primed for a miserable year. But here we are, half way through the season and Big Blue is looking real good. After an awful first two games, they have been unbeatable in the last six weeks and are just a mere one game out of first place. The defense looks strong and Eli Manning seems like he's emerging as the leader and quarterback they sold their perverbial soul for.

But before we get ahead of ourselves, let's remember that we've been here before. A few times as a matter of fact. Under Coughlin the Giants have been notorious for having a good first half of the season and then choking in the second half of seasons. (No Mets references needed) This season might have a familiar ending. If you look at the remaining schedule, they have a very difficult home stretch. Combine that with their recent history and you have to think that the end of the season might come earlier than expected.

So where does this all leave Coughlin? Unless the Giants are able to make it to the NFC Championship game, you have to think Reese is going to make a coaching change. There are going to be too many good coaching options available for him not to. My prediction is that Coughlin is going to have to win at least one or two playoff games to keep his job. And even if he is able to do that, if the players still aren't happy with him, a move might still happen. You can say that Tiki Barber only became a pro-bowler and border line hall of famer because of what Tom Coughlin did for him. At the same time, you can say that Coughlin is at least partially responsible for some of Eli's early struggles.

We're going to have to wait and see how the rest of the season plays out, but if history is any indicator, it can get ugly for Coughlin. The coach seems to have won back a lot of his players, but let's how rosey things are in December when they have lost three in a row and are in a must win situation to make the playoffs.