The Sports Truth

Tom Coughlin will remain the coach of the New York Giants for at least one more year, and was awarded a one-year contract extension that extends his deal through the 2008 season, the New York Times reports.

His head was rumored to be on the chopping block after collapsing down the stretch and barely clinching the NFC’s last wild card berth after a 6-2 start, but a meeting with team president John Mara left the front office convinced he should not be cut loose.

“What we wanted to hear from him is what exactly is his plan going forward,” Mara told reporters. “We wanted to hear those answers and we heard them.”

Coughlin, who went 24-24 in the first three seasons of the four-year deal he signed, and who has presided over first-round playoff defeats the past two years, sounded like a man who did not understand the fuss. He said he never felt as if his job was in jeopardy.

“Everything we talked about was getting the Giants better,” Coughlin told the Times. “I really don’t view time spent in that fashion, worried about my future, as time well spent.”

The Giants’ late-season collapse forced the owners to consider firing him, especially after losing a handful of winnable games and scraping into the postseason almost by default. With one year left on his contract, New York - which abhors “lame duck” contracts - decided it would either extend his deal or cut Coughlin loose, rather than letting him play out the deal.

Coughlin’s coaching hampered the team at times, but New York’s downfall coincided with a rash of injuries. The Giants played most of the second half of the season without defensive end Michael Strahan, linebacker LaVar Arrington, left tackle Luke Petitgout and receiver Amani Toomer. Several other starters missed multiple games on defense and on the offensive line that resulted in myriad miscommunications and penalties.

“Tom Coughlin is our coach for 2007 and hopefully for many years after that,” Mara said. “That’s the final decision.”

The operative word being hopefully. It’s not often that you witness a coach receive a contract extension under such circumstances - effectively receiving an ultimatum. In giving him a one-year extension, it’s as if the organization said, “Well, Coach, if we were more confident right now, we’d be giving you a three- or four-year extension. But we’re not. However, we don’t quite think you deserve to get fired. Yet.”

Which is probably the way it should be. Basically, the Giants had better improve next year or Coughlin will be out the door. He didn’t do enough this year to warrant the organization’s confidence, but he alone wasn’t responsible for the disappointments Giant fans endured. But this is it. There will be no more one-year extensions. He’ll either be signed for several years or cut loose.

On the one hand, the Giants have the pieces in place to play better. A free agent signing here and there could make them competitive. On the flip side, with the retirement of Tiki Barber, the aging of Strahan, and the dubiously mediocre play of third-year quarterback Eli Manning, Coughlin has his hands full if he wants to avoid such a quagmire in 2007.

Posted in NFL, Tom Coughlin