08 December, 2015

The Monday Morning Quarterback

In Defense Of Tom Coughlin

Photo: New York Post.

December 8, 2015
Peter Solari
 

The New York Giants gave another game away on Sunday, this time to the crosstown rival Jets, and rumors of Head Coach Tom Coughlin's firing at season's end, are swirling once again. The latest speculation surrounding the coach's future stems from a costly decision in the fourth quarter of Sunday's overtime loss. 

The Giants, facing a fourth-and-2 with just under nine minutes left to play in the fourth quarter, were clinging to a 20-10 lead. Coughlin uncharacteristically went for the kill shot and sent his offense back onto the field to put the Jets away for good. On the ensuing play, Reuben Randle, once again, stopped running mid-route, Eli Manning's pass was intercepted by Rontez Miles, and the comeback was on. 

Coughlin has defended his decision with the media, and while it's hard to argue with a two-time Super Bowl winner, he was probably wrong on this one. You've got to take the points when you can in this league, and nobody knows that better than the Giants. However, had the Giants opted to take a 13 point lead, the Jets wouldn't have been out of that game by any stretch. The 2015 Giants have become famous for suffering heartbreaking defeats. Can you really blame the coach for trying to change those fortunes? At the end of the day, Coughlin made a mistake, but when you put into perspective, it was hardly a fireable offense. 

How many times has the Giants' inability to score touchdowns, and their propensity to settle for field goals, cost them games? Missed opportunities have been haunting this team all season. They've held fourth quarter leads in five of their seven losses so far this year, and as Chris Chase from USA Today points out, "In those five crushing losses, the Giants were outscored 54-3 after getting their biggest lead of the game."

Given the team's track record to this point, it isn't hard to understand why Coughlin preferred to go up by three scores at that point in the game, and after the dust had settled, his players had their beleaguered coach's back. "[It was] a chance to win the game right there," said quarterback Eli Manning. "They're not coming back from 27-10," added offensive lineman Justin Pugh. 

In addition to the Giants' tendency to let victories slip through their fingers, the statistics were actually on Coughlin's side Sunday, as well. The team has been surprisingly efficient on fourth down this season. According to SportingCharts, the Giants' offense has converted six out of it's 10 fourth down attempts in 2015 for a 60% efficiency rate. They converted two fourth downs last week in Washington before their fourth quarter comeback fell short. One of those was Manning-to-Randle touchdown on fourth-and-16. 

With an offense that's found success on fourth down, and a defense that hasn't been able to stop anybody in the fourth quarter, can you blame the coach for going for the Jets' jugular on Sunday? If the Giants were able to punch that one in for six, we'd be talking about a 6-6 team sitting all alone on top of the NFC East. Doesn't that sound better than a 5-7 team, battling with three other mediocre (at best) teams, for a playoff spot that none of them seem to want?

It's also worth noting that many of the people who were calling for Coughlin's head on Monday, got exactly what they asked for on Sunday! A lot of Giants fans are ready to move on from Coughlin these days, but a lot of those same fans were also booing the coach on Sunday, when he sent kicker Josh Brown and his field goal unit out with just under nine minutes to play in the fourth quarter, to give his squad a 13 point lead.

That's right! Coach Coughlin was initially going to take the three point on that crucial fourth-and-2 play that has so many people talking. He sent the field goal unit onto the field and was met with a smattering of boos from the MetLife Stadium crowd. Coughlin then called a timeout and ultimately sent his offense back out, and the rest is history. 

That's not an excuse. A veteran NFL coach like Coughlin should, and is, focused on winning the game, not pleasing the fans. But it just goes to show you how he's in a lose-lose situation with many fans, and even some in the media. Again, had the Giants kicked that field goal, gone up by 13, and ended up losing by one point to the Jets, everyone would have been screaming at Coughlin for passing up the chance to go up by 17. He's damned if he does, and damned if he doesn't, and for the most part, it's very unfair to him.

AROUND THE DIVISION 

The Philadelphia Eagles (5-7) did everything they could to give Tom Brady and the New England Patriots (10-2) the win on Sunday, but pulled out a big 35-28 win in Massachusetts on Sunday afternoon. Combined with the Giants' 23-20 overtime loss to the Jets earlier in the day, the Eagles pulled even with New York at 5-7. The two face-off in New York week 17 on January 3rd. After starting the season 10-0, the Patriots have hit a bomb in the road and have lost two straight. 

The whole country got a chance to see just how bad the NFC East is on Monday night, as the Dallas Cowboys (4-8) edged out the Washington Redskins (5-7) 19-16 in the nation's capital. The Cowboys got their first win of the year without starting quarterback Tony Romo. Romo has only started three games this season. Despite all their problems, Dallas has never been out of the NFC East race because the rest of the division has been so bad. Dallas has been decent on the road with a record of 3-3. They're just 1-5 at home. The Redskins missed out on an opportunity to take hold of the division on Monday. A victory would have given Washington a .500 record and sole possession of first place in the NFC East. 

The division that nobody wants to win remains wide open. The Redskins, Eagles, and Giants are sitting in a three-way tie with identical 5-7 records, and the Cowboys are just one game behind them all at 4-8, with four games left before the playoffs. When the regular season comes to a close, no team in the NFC East will have double-digit wins, but one of them will host a playoff game. Who that is, remains to be seen, but they've all got a chance. If you're a glass half full type of person, remember that the Carolina Panthers won the NFC South win a 7-8-1 record in 2014, and won their home playoff game, before getting knocked out in the divisional round. This year, the Panthers are the only undefeated team in the NFL with a record of 12-0. Perhaps the future is bright for one of these fledgling NFC East teams. 

The Monday Morning Quarterback

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