It’s official: the New York Giants are sticking with Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen for 2025, and the message from co-owners John Mara and Steve Tisch is clear: They’re not letting fan outrage dictate their decisions. Coming off a 3-14 season—the worst in franchise history since the NFL expanded to 17 games—you’d think sweeping changes would be in order.
But instead of reacting to the plane banners, boos, and social media meltdowns, Mara stood pat.
Is this stubborn loyalty admirable or just another misstep for a franchise that’s spent the last decade stumbling? Giants fans are relatively split. After all, patience in the NFL is a rare commodity. But patience without progress? That’s a hard sell when your team can’t win more than three games.
A banner flew over MetLife Stadium before the Giants' game against the Saints with the following message:
— Giants Videos (@SNYGiants) December 8, 2024
"Mr. Mara enough - plz fix this dumpster fire" pic.twitter.com/JVm8u3vNA3
ANOTHER BANNER PLANE pic.twitter.com/cRsng4h5qW
— Giants Daily (@NYGDaily) December 15, 2024
Giants fans went to insane measures to get John Mara's attention
If you were anywhere near MetLife Stadium late in the season, you probably saw the protest banners soaring above the field. “Mr. Mara, enough. Fix this dumpster fire,” one read. Another took it up a notch: “We won’t stop until you fire everyone.” These weren’t cheap stunts either—hiring planes to fly banners isn’t exactly a Venmo-friendly endeavor.
But the fan-driven air raids, combined with weeks of boos and empty seats, weren’t enough to move Mara. The co-owner seems to believe in the process Schoen and Daboll have implemented, even if the results scream otherwise. It’s worth noting that Mara has admitted in the past that he might have pulled the plug too quickly on previous coaches, so maybe this time he’s overcorrecting.
That said, it’s hard to ignore how tone-deaf the decision feels. The 2024 season wasn’t just bad—it was historically awful. Between the historical double-digit losing streak, a franchise-low offensive output, and a stadium filled with frustration instead of fans, it’s baffling that the message from ownership amounts to “stay the course.”
If there’s a silver lining here, it’s this: Mara isn’t letting the fans completely run the show. Across town, New York Jets owner Woody Johnson has taken a different approach—listening to fans a little too much. From meddling in free agency to allegedly nixing trades over Madden ratings, Johnson’s habit of overreacting has left the Jets in a perpetual state of chaos.
Mara, for all his faults, isn’t veering into that territory. He’s betting that continuity—however frustrating it may be for fans—will eventually pay off. It’s a gamble, but at least it’s a calculated one.
The question now is whether this patience will lead to progress or just another wasted season. Schoen and Daboll are heading into a do-or-die year, armed with the No. 3 pick in the NFL Draft and a mandate to turn this ship around. If they draft a quarterback, 2025 will be their ultimate test. A bad pick—or another losing season—won’t just cost them their jobs; it’ll set the franchise back years.
And here’s the kicker: if Mara and Tisch are wrong, they’ll miss out on some of the league’s top coaching and GM candidates. Names like Mike Vrabel and Ben Johnson might not be available next offseason, leaving the Giants to pick from a potentially less appealing crop of replacements.
For now, though, Mara’s message is simple: He’s not going to let fans—or anyone else—dictate the team’s direction. Whether that’s wise or just plain stubborn will depend on what Schoen and Daboll do next.
The planes may have been grounded, but the pressure is still sky-high.