Some teams already know. The Giants wait.
The end of a season, with uncertainty looming as far as the security of the coaching staff, always creates an uncomfortable situation. Everyone is wondering and looking ahead to the future and no one is certain if the future includes the man in charge.
And so, when Pat Shurmur is asked if he believes the Giants are closer to being a playoff team this year than at the end of the 2018 season, and the coach responds, “We’ll find out next year,’’ it is especially disconcerting.
Shurmur mentioned all the young players he has put on the field in prominent spots. “Those guys are going to really benefit from the reps they get as we structure and move forward,’’ he said.
Will that include Shurmur? The Giants take a 4-11 record into Sunday’s fairly fascinating game against the Eagles (8-7) at MetLife Stadium. For the Eagles, it is win-and-in, as they capture the NFC East title if they beat the Giants or if the Cowboys lose to the Redskins. The games kick off at the same time, which will add to the drama.
Win or lose, a nine-game losing streak ruined the Giants’ season and likely provided the death-knell on Shurmur’s time as the head coach after only two years.
Two years ago, ownership determined it was not going to work out with Ben McAdoo and fired him 12 games into his second season. This season, the Redskins fired their coach, Jay Gruden, after five games. The Panthers dumped their coach, Ron Rivera, after 12 games. The Falcons (6-9) on Friday announced coach Dan Quinn and general manager Thomas Dimitroff will be back, though when Atlanta was 3-9 three weeks ago, a housecleaning seemed imminent. Lions ownership recently sent a letter to the fans stating head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn will return in 2020, despite the lousy two-year record of 9-20-1.
Patricia, high on the Giants’ list before they turned to Shurmur, clearly and obviously was relieved to hear he will get another year.
“It’s a process that we’re trying to go through to get the team to a highly competitive level that can sustain and be consistent and handle the ebbs and flows of an NFL season,’’ Patricia said. “I think that we’ve seen some strides that we’ve made with the team this year. We obviously need to improve and build upon that going forward.”
Shurmur hopes to continue what he started with general manager Dave Gettleman — whose return in 2020 is expected, but not guaranteed — and ensuring the Eagles do not make the playoffs easily would qualify as the most impressive victory of Shurmur’s 32 games with the Giants. He is 9-22, and the best he can hope for is a repeat of last year’s 5-11 finish.
Shurmur has the development of Daniel Jones and team chemistry working in his favor. His win-loss record is the black mark against him.
“We’re one of 20 teams where this is going to be your last game,’’ Shurmur said. “Unfortunately we’re not one of the 12 [playoff teams], yet.’’
Soon enough, we will all know if Shurmur gets to continue the journey with the Giants.
For more on the Giants, listen to the latest episode of the “Blue Rush” podcast:
