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With the firing of Brian Daboll, change is coming on the New York Giants' sideline. The same can't be said for the front office, where general manager Joe Schoen will remain in his role and lead the search for the team's next coach.

"We feel like Joe has assembled a good young nucleus of talent, and we look forward to its development," Giants owner and president John Mara said in a statement. "Unfortunately, the results over the past three years have not been what any of us want. We take full responsibility for those results and look forward to the kind of success our fans expect."

Schoen was hired in January of 2022, and he hired Daboll just one week later. Together, Schoen and Daboll turned the Giants into a surprise playoff team later that year, but the results have only gotten worse with each passing season.

Just like Daboll, Schoen has drawn the ire of frustrated Giants' fans, who haven't watched their team in the conference championship game since the 2011 campaign. Unlike Daboll, however, Schoen will get more time to right the ship in New York.

The question now is whether Schoen, whose resume is a very mixed bag, is the right man for the job as the Giants begin their search for a new coach.

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Tyler Sullivan
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Schoen's mixed results in the draft, free agency

In the first 14 months of Schoen's tenure, he managed to set the Giants back with a couple of major missteps. First, with two top-10 picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, Schoen swung and missed on both selections.

Schoen took defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux at No. 5 overall, and opted for offensive lineman Evan Neal two picks later at No. 7 overall. Thibodeaux has been a staple of the defensive line since his rookie season, but with 23.5 sacks in 53 career games, he hasn't produced like a top-10 pick.

Neal's time in New York has been even more disappointing. Injuries and poor performance have plagued Neal throughout his career, which has been limited to 29 games. This season, Neal has been reduced to a backup role at guard.

The second big miss of Schoen's first year-plus in New York was handing quarterback Daniel Jones a four-year, $160 million contract extension following the 2022 season. That deal immediately looked like a mistake as Jones' performance cratered, and in the second year of that contract, the Giants benched Jones before ultimately releasing him. (It probably doesn't help the optics given that Jones is now helming the NFL-best 8-2 Colts.)

In the aftermath of those misses, Schoen only added more stains to his resume. The Giants' 2023 draft class was littered with misses, including first-round cornerback Deonte Banks, second-round center John Michael Schmitz and third-round receiver Jalin Hyatt.

Then, there were the roster decisions in the 2024 offseason. Schoen let safety Xavier McKinney and star running back Saquon Barkley walk in free agency. McKinney signed with the Packers and immediately became a first-team All-Pro. All Barkley did after signing with the rival Philadelphia Eagles was lead the NFL in rushing (2,005 yards) en route to a Super Bowl victory.

Where Schoen and Daboll differ most is that there have been more signs of improvement from the general manager over the last year or two. For starters, Schoen has more hits (some of the star variety) in the draft over the last couple years.

In addition to getting some potential franchise cornerstones in the draft, Schoen has also been aggressive in trying to upgrade weak spots in free agency. This past offseason, he signed two of the top defensive backs available in cornerback Paulson Adebo and safety Jevon Holland.

Despite those wins, there are still serious questions for Schoen. This mess is his too, after all. Offensive line questions still abound in New York, and there are clearly still holes in the defense, especially at linebacker.

Schoen just seems to have saved himself on the strength of a couple strong draft classes, which in all fairness, might include the franchise's next star quarterback.

Does this reset Schoen's timeline?

How long is the leash for Schoen now that he gets to make a second coaching hire? What if the team gets off to a poor start in 2026 and some of the roster decisions that Schoen makes are to blame? The Giants could find themselves in a situation where they have a lame duck general manager and a first-year coach on two separate timelines.

If that does happen and the Giants move on from Schoen in 2026, they will hire a new general manager who did not hire the coach. At that point, does the new general manager have a quick trigger with the coach because he wants to get his own guy on the sidelines?

Things can spiral out of control quickly in those situations. Just look at how far and quickly the Tennessee Titans have fallen with a lack of cohesion and stability between the front office and the coaching staff.

If firing Daboll and retaining Schoen is going to work out in the long run, Schoen needs to replicate the successes of his 2025 offseason while avoiding the catastrophic moves that derailed his first couple of years in New York.