A team cannot endure a season the Giants just completed without changes being made and coach Brian Daboll wasted no time in making several of them.

It is who he anticipates returning, though, that provided the most intrigue.

Daboll said he expects his defensive coordinator, Wink Martindale, and his offensive coordinator, Mike Kafka, to return for the 2024 season.

Both are believed to be under contract for one more year but after the Giants went 6-11, with sub-par production on offense and friction between Daboll and Martindale, there was speculation Daboll might make drastic changes to the upper tier of his staff.

“My expectation is Wink and Kafka will both be back,’’ Daboll said. “But there’s still conversations that are gonna be had.’’

There certainly are questions that need to be had, especially after Daboll on Monday fired outside linebackers coach Drew Wilkins, a close Martindale confidant, and his younger brother, Kevin Wilkins, a defensive assistant.

It was Martindale that brought the two Wilkins assistants to the Giants. All three previously worked together with the Ravens.

News of the Wilkins’ dismissals came in the afternoon.

What Daboll actually announced the morning after the Giants beat the Eagles 27-10 to snap a three-game losing skid was the firings of special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey and offensive line coach Bobby Johnson.

“I thank those guys for what they’ve done the last two years,’’ Daboll said. “This is the hard part of the job. I have a lot of respect for them. Just felt we’re going to move in a different direction.’’

Daboll’s “expectation’’ that he will bring back his top coordinators is significant but far from the last word on the subject.

Daboll as of Monday morning had yet to sit down with Martindale and Kafka and those meetings could determine if Daboll’s intentions become reality.

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“I think they’re good coaches,’’ Daboll said. “It will be good to have some continuity and bring it back.’’

In Martindale’s case, there are issues to be resolved or at least discussed. It is no secret Martindale, 60, is not thrilled with Daboll’s hard-edged approach with his assistants.

There is thought Daboll at times this season wanted Martindale to pull back a bit on his all-out pressure packages, especially when the defensive backfield was short-handed, as it was in Week 10, when the Giants allowed 640 total yards in a 49-17 loss in Dallas.

Lack of adjustments was cited as a reason why Martindale and John Harbaugh parted ways after four years together with Martindale as the Ravens’ coordinator.

Mix in Daboll axing two trusted Martindale assistants and the plot thickens.

Drew Wilkins has basically been Martindale’s right-hand man the past two years and Martindale has said when he interviewed with Daboll for the defensive coordinator job he said “‘If it doesn’t work out with me, you need to hire this guy. He is a special talent in this league.’’

Daboll said he wants Martindale to return but is the feeling mutual?

“I know Wink talks about this as a destination place and things like that,’’ Daboll said. “I appreciate how hard [Martindale and Kafka] work, their commitment to the team. So that’s my plan.’’

It was a mixed bag this season on defense for Martindale’s unit.

The stats were nothing special – 26th in scoring defense (23.9 points a game), 27th in total yards (361.7), 19th in passing yards (229.3) and 29th in rushing yards (132.4).

Despite heavy blitzing, the Giants totalled only 34 sacks, 29th in the league. A late flurry allowed the Giants to finish tied with the Ravens with an NFL-high 31 takeaways.

“Wink’s been extremely instrumental in my growth as a player, my acclimation coming here as a free agent,’’ linebacker Bobby Okereke said. “He’s just an incredible leader of men, he’s an elite football coach and I feel very fortunate to be coached by him and I hope I continue to be coached by him for the near future.’’

Okereke wants to believe that any rift Daboll and Martindale might have can be mended.

“It shows a strong culture within an organization,’’ Okereke said, “Us as football players, we even fight with our teammates sometimes, brothers fight but at the end of the day we all have the team’s interests before ours. As long as everybody has that mindset I think any professional friction, it’s all water under the bridge.’’

The only possible hiccup with Kafka, 36, could be if Daboll intends to assume the play-calling duties.

Daboll said that is a conversation for down the road.

Daniel Jones, rehabbing from ACL surgery, said continuity within the offense is needed.

“I think that’s important for all of us,’’ Jones said. “A lot of time goes into learning a system and learning the ins and outs and everyone getting on the same page.’’

Johnson was brought in by Daboll last season after the two spent three years together in Buffalo.

The state of the offensive line deteriorated this past season.

The Giants gave up an NFL-high 85 sacks, amid frequent shuffling of the lineup and quarterback upheaval.

The lack of development of right tackle Evan Neal in his second season also did not help Johnson’s case.

“Appreciate the heck out of him,’’ rookie center John Michael Schmitz said. “Looking to move forward and see who this next guy is and looking forward to working with him and getting things rolling.’’

McGaughey has been a mainstay with the Giants, first as an assistant special teams coach from 2007-2010 and, since 2018, as the coordinator, working for Pat Shurmur, Joe Judge and retained by Daboll.

McGaughey’s unit was hurt by injuries at kicker, as Graham Gano made it through only eight games before requiring knee surgery.

There was also difficulty locating a punt returner until the mid-season signing of Gunner Olszewski.