The New York Giants are going to be searching for their fifth head coach since the team moved on from Tom Coughlin in 2015. Midway through his fourth season, Brian Daboll was fired after going 2-8 on the season and suffering another fourth-quarter collapse. Even though Daboll was fired, general manager Joe Schoen remains, and he's going to be in charge of their head coaching search.
The Giants can go a variety of different directions for their coaching search, whether it's a veteran former sideline boss or an up-and-coming coordinator.
FOX Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer discussed New York's head coaching search and potential candidates. Glazer listed names like Mike McCarthy, Matt Nagy, Steve Spagnuolo, Lou Anarumo and Arthur Smith. But one surprise name Glazer brings up is Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula, who is getting a boost from his head coach and friend Sean McVay.
Joe Schoen and the Giants begin their search for next head coach after firing Brian Daboll.@JayGlazer has more on that, and also who Mike Macdonald credits for the Seahawks success with the pass rush pic.twitter.com/NKXuQhZx6s
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 16, 2025
"I'll tell you this, of all the coaches that Sean McVay has kind of pushed along to be new head coaches, he's done more with Chris Shula than all of them combined," says Glazer. "These two guys are best friends, they went to college together...he thinks he's going to be a star."
Jay Glazer names Rams DC Chris Shula as potential Giants head coach candidate
Giants fans seeing those first five names won't be utterly impressed, as they have seen McCarthy, Nagy, Smith, and Spagnuolo as head coaches in the past. Anarumo is a coordinator, but not necessarily a high-profile candidate. Shula does offer intrigue, especially with the McVay factor.
Shula is the grandson of legendary head coach Don Shula, who led the 1972 Miami Dolphins to the only undefeated season in NFL history, and is the all-time leader in wins as a head coach with 347. His father, Dave, was a head coach for the Cincinnati Bengals from 1992-96, and his uncle, Mike, was a former head coach for Alabama from 2003-06. It feels as though it's only a matter of time before the Rams' defensive coordinator gets a job as a sideline boss.
Ever since McVay entered the NFL and secured his status as one of the best minds in the game, teams have tried to pluck his assistants from the coaching tree. The Cincinnati Bengals did that with Zac Taylor, as did the Minnesota Vikings with Kevin O'Connell, the Atlanta Falcons with Raheem Morris, and the Los Angeles Chargers with Brandon Staley. So, some mixed results.
But Glazer saying that McVay is openly hyping up Shula as a head coaching candidate should entice any fanbase, including the G-Men.
Sure, the Giants have been won over by a great head coach hyping his assistant, but that's how you get Joe Judge. But with Shula, he comes from a legendary coaching family, and he is a great defensive coach.
Entering Week 11, the Rams have allowed just 312.9 yards per game (10th-best in NFL) and 17.0 points per game (second-best in NFL). In Sunday's win over the Seattle Seahawks, the Rams' defense allowed just 19 points despite giving up 414 yards. But in the red zone, the Seahawks offense went one-for-four. Oh, and the defense picked off quarterback Sam Darnold four times.
Big Blue has the talent on defense, but Shane Bowen is doing no favors with his play-calling. Having a younger mind in Shula could do wonders for the defense. Not to mention, he could use what he learned from McVay to help out quarterback Jaxson Dart, and possibly pry some more assistants away from McVay.
The names linked to the Giants haven't been the most popular, but Shula is a name that might win over the pessimistic fan.