Giants HC Brian Daboll can go 'from Bono to Bozo'

Brian Daboll. Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

Giants' John Mara warns Brian Daboll can go 'from Bono to Bozo'

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 3/30/23

New York Giants co-owner John Mara has delivered a humorous yet serious warning to head coach Brian Daboll this spring.

"We kid him," Mara said about Daboll during an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, per ESPN and Kevin Patra of the NFL's website. "I mean, right now he's Bono walking around New York City. But I've told him — I've said: 'In this business, it doesn't take long to go from Bono to Bozo. So don't get your head too big right now.' But he has been great."

Mara is right about Daboll being a rock star among passionate Giants fans. In his first season after accepting the job in January 2022, Daboll helped New York evolve into one of the league's positive surprises and a club that went 9-7-1 en route to earning a playoff berth. Daboll then guided the Giants to a postseason victory at the Minnesota Vikings this past January.

Perhaps just as importantly, Daboll molded Daniel Jones into the type of quarterback Mara and others believe can take the Giants back to at least a Super Bowl appearance. Ahead of free agency, the Giants and Jones agreed to a four-year contract that could be worth up to $160M.

Daboll also went viral on multiple occasions this past fall for greeting supporters while enjoying victory cigars after wins:

Wowow, is that Brian Daboll smoking a cigar post beating the Jags today?!

What an absolute G

pic.twitter.com/e5mkBnT2jw
— Alex Wilson (@AlexWilsonESM) October 24, 2022

While Mara understands such adulation can quickly disappear, it sounds like he wants Daboll to enjoy certain moments he earned via his first season of work with the Giants.

"He likes to go to (New York Rangers) games at (Madison Square Garden), and they put his picture up there and he gets these standing ovations week after week," Mara added about his coach. "So it's a pretty cool thing to see."

To his credit, Daboll seems to have his head out of the clouds. Earlier this week, he admitted to reporters that he "got smoked in the playoffs" while referencing New York's humiliating 38-7 playoff loss at the division-rival Philadelphia Eagles.

A reporter prefaced a question to Daboll listing all of the Giants’ successes last season. He interrupted with “and got smoked in the playoffs.” That Eagles loss clearly left a bad taste that has lingered.
— Dan Duggan (@DDuggan21) March 28, 2023