For the past 12 years giants fans have become accustomed to the fiery red face of Tom Coughlin on the sideline. But after another season of relative failure and not even winning one of the worst divisions in football, Coughlin will be stepping down. The 69 year old coach met with team owner John Mara on Monday as he made his decision public. The NFL and all of its followers could see this decision coming. Not even three super bowls could cast a shadow on the past three seasons of disappointment for the giants. The spotlight of New York can be brutal on any sports team and its players. For any NY sport team, success has to be felt year in and year out without any failures. NY fans will boo anybody and everybody that comes across their path, home town heros can turn to villains in a matter of days. But one thing that all NY sports fans can agree on is their respect for Giants players, especially Tom Coughlin.

Moments after Coughlin declared that he was stepping down player after player stepped to his side in his support. Eli Manning fought back tears thinking about the coach who gave him a chance. “It wasn’t his fault” Eli explained, quoting the recent failure of the Giants. Antrel Rolle backed Eli by saying Coghlin got the short end of the stick. But as many players backed Coach Coughlin by saying it wasn’t his fault, many others took to social media to reflect on their time with Tom Coughlin. One of the most heartfelt goodbyes came from ex Giants D-lineman Justin Tuck, “But I will remember you for helping me become a man and challenging all of us to be better husbands and fathers and men. You did it the right way coach. And you might be retiring from coaching but I’m sure this isn’t a goodbye. That’s not your nature”. This message from Tuck to Coughlin shows the honest relationships coughlin had with his players. As a new breed of coaches makes their way into the league, the NFL must take a step back to acknowledge what kind of man they are losing.