If last year's Super Bowl run taught us anything, it's to make a plan and stick with it.
And that starts from the top on down.
Giants President and CEO John Mara didn't change course when the Giants were in the middle of a four-game losing streak in the heart of the season. Rather, he kept to his philosophy of continuity.
"That's one thing I've learned in this business having been around it all my life," Mara told Mike Francesa on WFAN Tuesday afternoon. "The worst thing you can do is be impatient and make quick decisions based on pressure from the media or pressure from the fans. You have to have a conviction that you have the right people working for you and then you have to give them a chance to do their job. You've got to be able to stay with them when things aren't going quite so well. Fortunately we've been able to do that.
"I never lost faith in Tom [Coughlin]. I knew he was a good head coach. I knew he could win for us. It was just a question of us providing him with the right players and getting a break here and there and being able to stay healthy and fortunately we've been able to do that. And obviously we're very pleased with the way things have turned out."
Now Coughlin is the toast of the town, and nobody is more deserving, says Mara.
"I just think back to the middle of last season when we lost four games in a row and we're sitting there at 6-6 and everybody is calling for his head," Mara said. "And now he's throwing out the first pitch at baseball games, he's calling 'Riders up' at the Belmont, he's all around town doing these things. It's great to see him do that because he deserves it. Nobody works harder than he does. Nobody wants to win more than he does and he deserves all the acclaim."
Part of celebrating 25 years of the radio station, Mara also reflected on the past quarter-century of the organization during the interview.
"We've had our share of pretty good moments, particularly lately. It's been an exciting time for us. We went through a long dry spell…from 1964 to 1980 where we had some pretty terrible teams during that period. Starting with the George Young era in the 1980s, we were able to turn the franchise around and fortunately have had some success. But it has been a memorable 25 years, for sure.
"We're very pleased to be where we are and I like our organization right now. I think we're set up to have some more success in the future and hopefully the ball will bounce our way. It certainly did bounce our way last year, particularly at the end of the season and in the playoffs."
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