Darius Slayton hints Giants should take a reunion route with their next HC

Well, that’s a wrap on the 2025-26 season, and there’s no doubt this was another disappointing one for the New York Giants. There were highs -- defeating the Chargers in Jaxson Dart’s first career start under center was awesome. Beating the snot out of the Eagles in primetime will never get old. And the lows -- losing Malik Nabers and Cam Skattebo to season-ending injuries.

But there’s still hope the G-Men will bounce back next year.

This season wasn’t pretty, ending at 4-13, and it’s clear things need to get better. Still, with how well Dart played and a roster that’s talented enough on paper, the G-Men don’t need a full overhaul, just some better pieces. And it all starts at the top with the vacant head coaching job.

With Big Blue finishing the year with back-to-back wins, they won’t have a top pick in this year’s NFL Draft. The priority this offseason for general manager Joe Schoen and the front office is to nail the head coaching hire. They are expected to interview several candidates for the job, and veteran wideout Darius Slayton provided some input on who he thinks they should bring in.

Darius Slayton wants Giants to go the reminisce route with HC hire

Several players met with the media on Monday morning following the season finale to recap the past year and what the future holds. One player who spoke was veteran wide receiver Darius Slayton, who told the media he'd like to see the Giants' next head coach be "Tom Coughlin-esque."

The initial list of candidates includes former NFL head coach Mike McCarthy, Packers DC Jeff Hafley, former Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce, Rams DC Chris Shula, Seahawks OC Klint Kubiak, and Commanders OC Kliff Kingsbury, among others.

Mike Kafka is also expected to receive an interview, and it wouldn't be shocking if the G-Men reached out to Kevin Stefanski as well, who was fired by the Browns on Monday.

Related: Mike Kafka made stance on Giants’ head coaching job impossible to ignore

While each of these candidates brings something to the table that New York and Dart could benefit from, none of them is exactly "Coughlin-esque," or even close to what the legendary head coach brought to this franchise for 12 seasons. However, Slayton isn’t wrong. If they can find someone with similar experience who can make a similar impact on Dart as Coughlin did on Eli Manning, it could be a smart hire.

The closest candidate to Coughlin on the list would probably be McCarthy, who helped develop Aaron Rodgers during his time as his head coach of the Packers, and even helped lead them to a Super Bowl XLV victory over the Steelers.

McCarthy most recently served as the Cowboys' HC before being fired in 2024, but he understands the NFC East and would bring more experience to East Rutherford than any other candidate the G-Men plan to interview. He’s also been a quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator for several teams, so his resume would be something Dart, Slayton, and the offense should sign on for.