This was as close to a vote of confidence as a co-owner of a team currently sitting at the bottom of the table with two wins and five losses.
John Mara remains in plans to move on with Giants general manager Joe Schon and head coach Brian Daboll despite losing the game Wednesday night and the team's continued struggles getting into scoring position. He said not for the time being. Mission: Impossible.
“Obviously we are all very disappointed in the current situation,” Mara said. “But I'll tell you one thing: we haven't made any changes this season and we don't plan on making any changes in the offseason.
“I’m not trying to analyze individual player performance or offense versus defense or anything like that, I just wanted to make that statement.
“There will be a time and a place to discuss this in more detail after the season.”
Mara spoke at the screening of “The Duke: The Enormous Life of Wellington Mara'' at the Paley Center for Media, an important and emotional event for himself and his family.
The documentary, which chronicles the life of his father and franchise founder Wellington Mara, is scheduled to air Friday night on NFL Network as part of the Giants' ongoing 100th season celebration.
As he considers his father's legacy, John Mara said he hopes to continue down this path with the lessons he learned from him.
“I’m probably trying to be more patient than I have been in the last few years,” Mara said. “He's always preached that and I may have been guilty of not being patient enough in recent years. That's why I'm committed to Joe and Brian Daboll and giving them a chance to turn things around.” This is one of the reasons why we are giving
“This is very difficult because the last 10 or 12 years have not been very good for fans and that is especially difficult. But we have to do the right thing and we did it. We are committed to seeing this process through to completion.”
The Giants are headed for their eighth losing season in the past nine years and 10th losing season in the past 12 years.
Shane and Daboll's debut match was a huge hit. The Giants went 9-7-1, winning their first playoff game since the 2011 season, and Daboll was named NFL Coach of the Year.
Everything has been downhill since then. In 2023, they had 6 wins and 11 losses, and this year was a slump.
The Giants are alone in last place in the NFC East, 0-3 in division and 0-4 at home, with just one touchdown in the four losses.
Mara couldn't resist when they fired Ben McAdoo two full seasons ago.
Mara fired Pat Shurmur and Joe Judge after two seasons each.
Daboll will be in his third year as the Giants' first head coach since Tom Coughlin was with the Giants for 12 years.
Although the evidence begins to be incriminating, Mara remains adamant that Shane and Daboll can turn this situation around.
“Well, just going to a meeting with them and the process that they have,” Mara said. “I still have confidence in both of them when they look at our future and talk about evaluating our personnel.”
Mara did not comment on quarterback Daniel Jones' struggles.
“I'm not going to criticize individual players,” he said. “Obviously, we're struggling offensively right now, and there's a lot of reasons for that.”
Back in the offseason, Mara listened as Schoen explained why it was in the franchise's best interest to not make a huge financial commitment to Saquon Barkley.
Mara ultimately accepted the idea, but admitted he would lose sleep at night if Barkley signed with the Eagles.
Well, last Sunday, the day of reckoning arrived. Barkley played for the first time against his former team, rushing for 176 yards and a touchdown in a 28-3 win over the Eagles at MetLife Stadium.
“Listen, he knows how I feel about him,” Mara said of Barkley. “I can't say I was surprised by how he played. We greeted each other before the game. He's a great player. Not only was he a great player for us, but he represented us off the field. I'll always be grateful to him for what he showed me, and he knows that.”
In the documentary, Wellington Mara was seen holding up the Super Bowl trophy and celebrating the Giants' great moment.
The last time the Giants won a Super Bowl was after the 2011 season.
John Mara wants to relive those glorious days.
“Believe more than you can know,” he said. “This is difficult for me, my family, and especially my fans, and that's what affects me the most.”
