Late-arriving Giants GM takes defensive posture in bizarre bye week presser

Saddled with a 2-11 record as the Giants stumble into the bye week, general manager Joe Schoen faced the music on Tuesday but released a few tunes the franchise fanbase instantly began picking apart.

"Two wins is not where we want to be right now, it's not good enough. I understand the frustration from fans, ownership, the people inside the building. Nobody is more frustrated than myself. It starts with me. I'm tasked with trying to get this organization back in the proper direction," Schoen said. "I'm tasked with getting this organization going in the proper direction. The standard is to compete for championships year in and year out. That's the plan moving forward."

Before a press conference tone turned from defensive to contentious, Schoen arrived more than 30 minutes after the scheduled start time Tuesday on a day when the Giants were defending a decision to bench first-round pick Abdul Carter -- for exceissive tardiness.

When asked whether he is the right man to lead the Giants' turnaround, Schoen said he "understands the question" and prefers to focus his energy on supporting current interim head coach Mike Kafka.

Kafka was hired to replace Brian Daboll, a decision Shoen appeared to separate himself from in his first comments since owners and team chairman John Mara and Steve Tisch announced the move last month.

"Ownership made a decision to move on. I'm going to control what I can control," Schoen said.

Schoen ran the initial coaching search after he was hired out of the Bills' front office and went with Daboll, then offensive coordinator in Buffalo, as head coach in 2022.

"Dabs and I have an extended history together, professionally and personally. Difficult football decision we decided to make," Schoen said.

The Giants enter the bye week with seven consecutive losses, but ownership has been down this very road before. They faced a similar decision last December.

New York had seven losses in a row before adding to it with a 14-11 defeat at the hands of the New Orleans Saints, a 21-point loss to the Baltimore Ravens and a 27-point beatdown at Atlanta. They finished 3-14, and beating the Colts (45-33) in Week 17 meant coughing up the No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft to the Titans.

The Giants selected Carter (third overall) and quarterback Jaxson Dart (25th) with first-round picks, part of the foundation Schoen said he believes can spark a return to glory for the Giants. Schoen dispelled the notion that Daboll alone wanted Dart, and said he and the scouting staff were evaluating the quarterback class long before Daboll was able because he was busy coaching the team in-season.

The franchise could again be making a pick at the top of the first round, with Schoen holding the keys.

"Nobody's perfect. The chance for me batting 1.000 is gone because I've made mistakes. I'm better at this job than I was four years ago. ... As you go through it, there's been a lot of decisions that have been right. As long as we go through it and don't make the same mistakes twice, we're going to continue to get better. Have I screwed up? I've made mistakes. We're going to do everything we can to get this thing right."

Schoen said nobody focuses on what went wrong more than he has, but he plans to defend himself if asked by owners to make a case for keeping his job. That would include hiring Daboll's replacement.

In a contentious question-and-answer session, Schoen was unable to mask his rising blood pressure when pressed about failures with the roster and coaching decisions.

"The calls we've gotten, I think we'll be able to fill the job," he said before exiting the dais with an on-the-move "thanks guys" sign-off.

--Field Level Media