Giants’ head coaching process is flashing warning signs fans know too well

The New York Giants are right in the thick of their head coaching search, but the optics of their search are still a little off. As far as we know, Joe Schoen's job is safe, but the right head coaching candidate might force John Mara to send him packing in order to bring his chosen GM candidate to New York.

The search has primarily seen the Giants zero in on John Harbaugh since he was shockingly fired, but obviously, they still have to conduct a legitimate hiring process. And a key part of that process was interviewing OC and interim head coach Mike Kafka for the full-time head coach post on Wednesday.

It remains to be seen whether or not the 38-year-old is a serious candidate, but it feels highly unlikely. After Brian Daboll was fired after Big Blue's Week 10 loss to the Bears, Kafka went 2-5 as interim head coach, and his only victories were meaningless wins against the Raiders and Cowboys.

For that reason, he has absolutely no business being legitimately considered to coach this team.

Mike Kafka interviewing for the Giants' head coach job is a complete joke

Kafka has been a head coaching finalist on multiple occasions across the last few seasons, but he never did a spectacular job as the OC in New York. He often ceded play-calling duties to Daboll across the last few seasons, but he managed to resume the responsibility on multiple occasions.

In recent seasons, Kafka emerged as one of the brightest young names in coaching circles, so even if his future isn't with Big Blue, he'll receive an opportunity somewhere. He nearly landed the Arizona Cardinals' head coaching job in 2023 before they hired Jonathan Gannon, so he's clearly respected.

Kafka also interviewed with the Colts, Seahawks, and Saints in each of the last three offseasons, but was ultimately passed over for Shane Steichen, Mike Macdonald, and Kellen Moore, respectively. However, he could receive more interviews or just settle into an OC job with a different NFL team.

Something worth noting is that the league's Rooney Rule mandate does not apply for internal candidates, so it's not even like he was checking a box. With that said, it wouldn't be overly surprising if Schoen and Mara interviewed him as a courtesy for handling a difficult job after Daboll was fired.

Regardless, it's hard not to root for him to succeed elsewhere. But given Kafka has a background working with Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City, the most likely outcome is him landing as the new Chiefs' offensive coordinator if Matt Nagy is given a second shot as a head coach.