It was comical to see interim head coach Mike Kafka fire another coach. And New York Giants standout Dexter Lawrence got caught in the mix. Kafka revealed that Lawrence was crying over the injury that kept him off the field, according to a post on X by Giants videos.
“He was the guy who was battling through this injury,” Kafka said. “Probably just toughed it out for us. And was trying to give us everything he had. The decision was to just play him in those pass situations. Second and longs. Third and long. So he could be a factor on a limited snap count. I thought that was the right thing to do and handle him. And hats off to Dexter for toughing it out and working through that. This guy was in tears on the sideline, wanting to be out there with the players. And gave us his all.”
Giants take another tough loss
New York came up on the short end of a 34-27 overtime decision against the Lions. It was the sixth straight loss for the Giants.
And some believe the Giants have failed in situations this season without their best guys on the field, according to giantswire.com.
“This wasn't isolated,” Dan Benton wrote. “Earlier, on a crucial second-and-1, Lawrence was sidelined as Gibbs scampered for 49 yards. It's become a troubling season-long pattern for Big Blue: Elite defenders like Lawrence are sidelined in pivotal spots, fueling fan frustration over load management clashing with game-day urgency.
“As the Giants limp toward the finish, Kafka's strategy raises tough questions about balancing health and heart. If Lawrence was able to return later on that series, there was no reason for him to be on the sideline when it started.
Benton added, “If you can play, play. If you can't, don't. The Giants have a lot of problems, and now heart appears to be one of them.”
It’s a season that has gone off the rails. But the surprising thing is that the Giants have remained competitive against some good football teams. An easy argument can be made that they should have beaten the Broncos, which ended with a 33-32 loss. They also had real shots to beat the Bears and Packers before falling short against the Lions.
