New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka Danielle Parhizkaran/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

NY Giants Coachig Staff Lands in Bottom of New League-wide Ranking

Originally posted on New York Giants on SI
By Patricia Traina | Last updated Aug 1, 2025 8:00 PM ET

Another day, another ranking dissing the New York Giants.

This one comes courtesy of ESPN's Ben Solak, who, in a preseason ranking of all 32 NFL head coaches, offensive coordinators, and defensive coordinators, put the Giants dead last, down eight spots from the previous year’s rankings.

“While the offensive brain trust of Daboll and Kafka has yet to string together multiple seasons of above-average offense, there are pockets of innovation,” Solak said.

“It's not much to hang a hat on, but if and when we see Jaxson Dart this season at quarterback, I expect the team to have some smart, easy ways to get him into a rhythm and involved in the running game.”

Solak’s doubt regarding the offensive side of the house is understandable. After peaking at 18th overall league-wide in 2022, a season in which the Giants not only averaged a respectable 21.5 points per game, the unit crumbled under the weight of poor quarterback play, never ranking higher than 29th overall (in 2023).

Further, the best it’s done in terms of average points per game came in 2024 when it averaged 16.1 points per game, just a one-point improvement from its 2023 average.

Some love for defense coordinator Shane Bowen

Defensively, Solak was more bullish on the Giants, saying, “I have a warmer appreciation for Bowen, who is always willing to get creative with alignment and coverages to solve personnel problems on the back end.

“The 2024 Giants' defense was definitely poor, but they have overhauled the secondary and added to the pass rush this offseason, so I'm happy reserving a stronger judgment for Year 2.”

Interestingly, the Giants appear willing to run it back with the same offensive personnel, save for the quarterback room, which, other than for Tommy DeVito, was significantly upgraded.

Meanwhile, the defense, which while not horrible, also wasn’t great, got a massive overhaul this past offseason as the Giants continue to struggle with stopping the run.

Time will tell if the problem is in the coaching staff, the player personnel, or, what is most likely, a combination of the two. But until such time when the Giants start to show improvement, Solak is not about to give the Giants coaching staff any props, noting that, “It's tough to believe in a high ceiling with the Giants' current staff.”

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This article first appeared on New York Giants on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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