New York Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale toed the line during his last media availability of the 2023 season as questions swirl around his future with the team.
With one game to go, his job security is uncertain given a reported rift between him and head coach Brian Daboll — not to mention the Giants are finishing off yet another playoff-less season as they enter Sunday’s season finale against the Philadelphia Eagles at 5-11.
“Do I expect to be back? I don’t know why I wouldn’t,” Martindale said on Thursday. “You have those conversations after this last game and you sit back and you can reflect and you take the emotion out of it, the emotion, the grind, the stress of preparing every week and you sit back, and you talk things out. Say here’s where we are at, so I think that’s natural on every team.”
Martindale’s aggressive defense has taken a step back this season, though they were the reason why they remained competitive in as many games as they had in 2023. Often hung out to dry by an inept offense whose offensive line offered little protection to its three struggling quarterbacks, Daniel Jones, Tyrod Taylor, and Tommy DeVito, New York’s defense was on the field constantly. Only nine other teams in the NFL had shorter average offensive possessions per game this season than the Giants.
Shortly after Thanksgiving, Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer reported that tension was building between Martindale and Daboll — so much so that a “mutual parting of ways,” is in the cards.
Both Daboll and Martindale have played damage control since then, but another down year with little tangible evidence that their relationship has smoothed over re-opens the question. Martindale did add that the two could still have a productive working relationship, though.
“I think the future is bright if you’re asking me how I look at my future… Those answers will come later on [next] week as far as which way we go,” Martindale said. “I know we’ve got the greatest fans in this league and we’ve got the greatest ownership in this league, and you want to have a winner, you deserve to have a winner, and so whenever you are not winning, how this league works, inevitably, you are going to have conversations, tough conversations. How that works out is how that is going to work out.”
