The Brian that Bill Belichick meant to text with congratulations on getting the Giants job back in 2022 is no longer coaching here in New York.
Brian Daboll was fired in November.
The Brian that Belichick allegedly texted instead, Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, is coming back to MetLife Stadium on Sunday seeking a third straight Minnesota win, with his discrimination lawsuit against the NFL, the Giants and other teams over that hiring cycle still hanging in the balance.
Riding shotgun to Flores will be Vikings second-year quarterback J.J. McCarthy, an inconsistent but swaggy young QB whom the Giants passed on entirely in the 2024 NFL Draft when they were in major need of a quarterback.
So Flores and McCarthy have enough motivation alone to hand the Giants (2-12) a ninth straight loss on Sunday.
On top of that, it will be interesting to see how Giants rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart is able to handle Flores’ aggressive and shapeshifting defense. This is like nothing Dart has faced yet in the NFL.
“Just chaos,” Dart said, describing Flores’ scheme. “[It’s] chaos, just trying to disguise different looks and bring a whole bunch of different pressures. But they’re organized in the back end too, so they do it soundly.”
The Vikings (6-8) have been one of the NFL’s more disappointing teams this season after letting Sam Darnold walk in free agency to the Seattle Seahawks to clear a path for McCarthy to take the reins.
They even placed three starters on injured reserve this week that will miss Sunday’s game: offensive tackle Christian Darrisaw (knee), outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard (shoulder) and safety Josh Metellus (knee/shoulder). Top defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (thigh) also will sit out.
And yet the Vikings are still 2.5-point road favorites over the Giants.
A major reason is that the Vikings shut out the Washington Commanders two weeks ago, 31-0, in Minnesota. The Vegas oddsmakers made Giants home favorites over the Commanders last week in response.
And then the Giants proceeded to lose, 29-21, to a Washington team littered with practice squad players, starting backup QB Marcus Mariota and boasting only a 4-10 record after that win.
There is also what happened the last time the Vikings came here with Flores as defensive coordinator: Minnesota embarrassed the Giants, 28-6, in a brutal 2024 Week 1 season opener. Daniel Jones and the Giants’ offense, as was typical under Daboll, didn’t manage a single touchdown.
That was back when Graham Gano was still kicking for the Giants. On Sunday, the nod will go to Ben Sauls, the Giants’ fourth kicker of this season, after they released Younghoe Koo this week.
The Giants’ defense this season, though, truly puts them in position to lose every game the play.
Look at this stat: The Giants have outscored their opponents 118-104 in the first and third quarters of games this season. They have been outscored 282-182 in the second and fourth quarters.
Now here comes McCarthy, who hot-dogged a rushing touchdown in last week’s 34-26 win over the Dallas Cowboys, prepared to make a statement and have another get-right game against one of the NFL’s worst defenses.
“A really sharp kid, great kid with a cool personality,” Giants interim head coach Mike Kafka said this week.
How so?
“He’s got a unique personality,” Kafka said. “I think he’s got just kind of a laid-back chill [guy], but when the lights turn on and when the ball’s out there, he kind of flips a little bit of a switch. And it’s cool to watch that.”
The Giants’ outlook shouldn’t be so bleak against such a vulnerable, mistake prone team. But they just haven’t proven capable of getting out of their own way.
They have been outscored 123-83 during Kafka’s 0-4 start as interim coach, including a 62-36 deficit during their 0-2 stretch since the firing of former defensive coordinator Shane Bowen.
And the locker room feels largely lifeless, barren and detached.
There is an attractive road matchup on deck at Las Vegas, where the Giants (0-8 on the road) might have a chance to pad some stats, avoid a winless road season and ruin the franchise’s chances at the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft.
But this is as bleak as it gets.
A win over Sunday over the Vikings would at least award some credit to the fight in the bellies of a few of the Giants’ leaders, if they pull it off.
Otherwise, this feels like a team and a game that should be paying fans to come and see them — and not the other way around.
THIBODEAUX MISSES FIFTH STRAIGHT GAME
Edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux sat out a full week of practice again and will miss his fifth straight game due to a right shoulder sprain. Thibodeaux is doing some aggressive on-field running and drill work without pads, so he still has a chance to return to the field as soon as the Vegas game. But his absence has been felt weekly. His edge-setting and motor are missed.
