New York Giants co-owner John Mara (left) and New York Giants General Manager, Joe Schoen, speak with New York Giants Head Coach, Brian Daboll, at MetLife Stadium before their team hosts the New England Patriots, Sunday, November 26, 2023.

Flying-mad fans demand Giants ‘fire everyone’

New York Giants ownership got another pregame message from angry fans.

For the second Sunday in a row, a plane flew over MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., ahead of kickoff, dragging a banner asking co-owner John Mara to make a giant change in the organization.

“Mr Mara Enough — We won’t stop until you fire everyone,” the banner read.

The Giants (2-11) lost an uninspiring game last week to the New Orleans Saints, 14-11. Prior to that contest, a similar message implored Mara to “fix this dumpster fire.”

New York stood at 2-3 on Oct. 6 following a 29-20 road win over the Seattle Seahawks. They’ve since lost eight consecutive games and are winless at home.

And the odds stood against the Giants entering Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens (8-5). Per the New York Post, the 16.5-point spread favoring the Ravens was the highest in the NFL this season and the largest for a home underdog since at least 1966.

Seven games into the season, with the Giants at 2-5, Mara gave a vote of confidence to general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll.

“Obviously, we’re all very disappointed with where we are right now,” Mara said. “But I’m gonna say one thing: we are not making any changes this season. And I do not anticipate making any changes in the offseason, either.”

The six losses since could have changed Mara’s mind, but he hasn’t addressed the aerial messages specifically or his leadership’s future in general. It’s been a season of turmoil, which included the release of starting quarterback Daniel Jones after he was benched by Daboll,

Things won’t get any easier for the Giants after the Ravens’ visit.

New York closes the season with games against two teams — the Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts — that still had a shot at the playoffs as of Week 15, and the NFC East-leading Philadelphia Eagles.

The Week 17 meeting with the Colts is the final home game of the 2024 season.

The Giants have made the playoffs just twice since 2012 when the won the second of two Super Bowls in the Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning era. Since Coughlin’s departure following the 2015 season, the Giants have employed four head coaches and one interim coach.

The Mara family has owned the team since its founding in 1925.

–Field Level Media

Oct 9, 2022; London, United Kingdom; New York Giants co-owner John Mara watches from the sidelines during an NFL International Series game against the Green Bay Packers at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

NFL will allow teams to play on two short weeks

NFL teams will be allowed to appear in two Thursday games on short weeks based on a rule change implemented Tuesday at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix.

The league tabled a vote on permitting flex scheduling for Thursday night games, a tweak that, if ultimately approved, could prevent matchups of losing teams in a prime-time showcase.

The change that was implemented could end up seeing some teams play on Thursday three times. Should a team be scheduled on consecutive Thursdays, only the first of those two games would be considered a short week.

In prior years, every team was assigned at least one Thursday game per season, but that will no longer be a requirement moving forward.

NFL executive vice president and chief media and business officer Brian Rolapp said, “We’re interested in making sure that we get exposure for all of our clubs. We also believe that these national windows are for clubs that are playing well. We want to put the best teams in the best windows.”

As for flex scheduling for Thursday games, New York Giants owner John Mara, who opposes the idea, fears it might pass at the next league meetings in May, according to ESPN.

“At some point, can we please give some consideration to the people who are coming to our games?” Mara said, according to ESPN. “People make plans to go to these games weeks and months in advance. And 15 days ahead of time to say, ‘Sorry, folks, that game you were planning on taking your kids to Sunday at 1, now it’s on Thursday night?’ What are we thinking about?”

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell responded to Mara’s remarks by saying, “There isn’t anybody in any of our organization that doesn’t put our fans first. Providing the best matchups for our fans is what we do. That’s part of what our schedule has always focused on. Flex has been part of that. We are very judicious with it and careful with it. We look at all the impacts of that before a decision is made.”

–Field Level Media

New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones (8) looks to throw in the first half. The Giants defeat the Eagles, 13-7, at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Nov. 28, 2021, in East Rutherford.

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Giants QB Daniel Jones (neck) cleared for offseason program

There will be no limitations on what quarterback Daniel Jones can do as the New York Giants begin their offseason workout program Monday.

Jones told reporters he was “cleared and ready to go” with the Giants after a neck injury cut short his 2021 season.

Jones only played 11 games for New York in 2021, his third NFL season, before the injury sidelined him and eventually got him placed on injured reserve. In those 11 games (all starts), Jones threw for 2,248 passing yards, 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions on a career-best 64.3 completion percentage.

He also fumbled seven times, and the Giants went just 4-7 in those games.

The Giants are under new management, with GM Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll opting to bring in veteran Tyrod Taylor at the position. Jones remains the starter for now.

“I’m excited. I’m excited to get going here. I appreciate the support,” he said. “But it’s my job to do my role, to prepare this team, to prepare myself to play as well as I can and put this team in position to win games. So I take that responsibility very seriously and that is what I’m focused on.”

Jones has yet to play a full season in the NFL, missing time each season with injuries while playing behind a much-maligned offensive line. Owner John Mara admitted this winter that the Giants had “done everything we can to screw (Jones) up since he’s been here.”

Soon New York will need to choose whether to pick up the fifth-year option on Jones’ rookie contract for 2023. That would be worth a costly $22.4 million.

“We’ll do that when it comes up,” Jones said Monday. “But I’m focused on what we’re doing here and preparing and taking advantage of every day we have here together.”

–Field Level Media

Oct 24, 2021; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants owner John Mara (right) looks on with general manager Dave Gettleman (left) before the game against the Carolina Panthers at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Owner: Giants ‘kept getting worse, need to start from ground up’

John Mara plans to take his sweet time selecting the new hierarchy of the New York Giants.

Mara said he was gutted to fire head coach Joe Judge after two seasons, the same fate his two predecessors experienced in New York, but felt he was left no choice but to start over.

“I kept thinking we had hit rock bottom,” said Mara, the team’s president and co-owner along with Steve Tisch. “And then each week it got a little worse.”

Offensive coordinator Jason Garrett was fired during the season, running back Saquon Barkley battled injuries again and purported franchise quarterback Daniel Jones was shut down with a neck injury in December.

The long, slow fade leaves the Giants at what Mara said has to be the lowest point experienced on his watch.

He said his current search for a new coach and general manager will be tedious. Rushing the process and decision in the past didn’t serve the franchise or its fans well, he said.

Mara plans to first find a general manager to help steer the hunt for the right head coach. Bills assistant general manager Joe Schoen interviewed with the team Wednesday via teleconference.

“We need to start from the ground up again,” Mara said.

Mara and Tisch are set to hire their fourth head coach since 2016 — Judge, Pat Shurmur, Ben McAdoo — and the Giants went 4-13 in 2021. The roster includes to-be-determined notations at many positions as of the retirement of general manager Dave Gettleman on Monday.

All of the losses and uncertainty created a fanbase short on patience and trust. Mara said he grasps that he hasn’t given fans a reason to believe the Giants will get it right, and senses the franchise has a bridge to rebuild with fans.

“That’s not going to happen overnight,” he said.

–Field Level Media