Losing isn't only reason Giants could fire Brian Daboll, Joe Schoen?

It was suggested even before the New York Giants fell to 0-2 on the season that team co-owner John Mara could part ways with head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen if the Giants endured a second straight losing campaign under their watch. 

For a piece published Wednesday, NFL reporter and analyst Darryl Slater of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com explained why Daboll and Schoen may need more than a handful of wins to keep their jobs beyond Week 18. 

"For Giants co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch -- with Mara heading the day-to-day operations -- it’s always been not just about losing in terms of firing a coach and/or a general manager," Slater wrote. "Another important key factor they’ll surely consider -- fan apathy. Are seats at MetLife Stadium empty? Or filled instead with opposing fans? Neither would be good for Daboll and GM Joe Schoen if fans decide they’re out on this regime early in year three." 

As of Wednesday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the winless Giants as six-point underdogs for this Sunday's matchup at the 1-1 Cleveland Browns. Barring some surprising developments, the division-rival Dallas Cowboys will almost certainly be the betting favorites for the Week 4 game played at MetLife Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 26. 

It's been mentioned that the Giants likely will be underdogs through at least their next five games. Add in that Big Blue has notched just one playoff victory since the Super Bowl XLVI win in February 2012, and it's understandable that season-ticket holders could already be thinking about selling their seats for November and December contests. 

"An 0-3 Giants team losing to Dallas on that Thursday night in a stadium full of Cowboys fans would surely infuriate Mara," Slater added, "especially since the Giants have lost six straight games -- and 13 of their past 14 -- to Dallas." 

Per the Associated Press (h/t USA Today), Mara openly admitted in the fall of 2018 that he felt "embarrassed" and "sick about" the team's slow start to that season. Keeping then-head coach Pat Shurmur around through the 2019 campaign did the Giants little good, and one wonders if Mara now regrets how he handled the end of that regime. 

A mock draft produced by Chris Trapasso of CBS Sports that was published on Wednesday predicted the Giants will "earn" the second pick for the 2025 NFL Draft. Such a development would almost certainly result in Daboll and Schoen being shown the door in January -- unless Mara blows things up before then.