Marcus Freeman a candidate for New York Giants opening, per report

In news that is not necessarily surprising but noteworthy nonetheless, NFL Network reported Sunday that Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman is a candidate for the New York Giants vanancy.

The network's Mike Garofolo reported that Freeman is the top college candidate in a search that is expected to be wide-ranging, with Garofolo noting that there is no "belle of the ball" Ben Johnson-type offensive-play caller in this cycle.

Ultimately, Freeman's appeal to New York may ultimately be his downfall. The 39-year-old has only minimal experience at the NFL level. A fifth-round pick by the Chicago Bears in 2009, Freeman did not stick with a team and took a GA role with his alma mater Ohio State in 2010, and has remained in college football ever since. He is 43-12 in four seasons at Notre Dame, leading the Fighting Irish to the College Football Playoff national title game a year ago and narrowly missing a CFP berth this fall. Notre Dame opted out of the Pop-Tarts Bowl, freeing Freeman's schedule if and when the Giants want to talk.

The Giants moved on from Brian Daboll after a 2-8 start, and overall the club has endured eight losing seasons in its last nine tries. 

Since the end of Tom Coughlin's 12-year run in 2015, the G-Men have employed four coaches, three of them rookies three rookie NFL head coaches, and all four have left, quickly, with losing records. Ben McAdoo went 13-15 and was fired toward the end of his second season; Pat Shurmur went 9-23 in two seasons, after a 9-23 run in Cleveland from 2011-12; Joe Judge went 10-23 in two seasons; and then Daboll went 20-40-1 from 2022-25.

On the positive side for the Irish, NFL Network reported the Cincinnati Bengals are unlikely to move on from head coach Zac Taylor, who remains under contract through 2027. Sources told FootballScoop that Cincinnati would be a job to watch for Freeman's services if it came open. The New York Jets are also expected to retain embattled first-year head coach Aaron Glenn.