Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman’s 2025 ended with a regular-season win against Stanford. At the time, no one at South Bend would have thought that the game might be the last time they saw their leader on the sidelines. But, as per an NBC analyst, Freeman is done at the Irish.

“There are rumors coming from all over the place that Marcus Freeman is going to leave Notre Dame and go to the NFL,” Ty Johnson said on the December 26 episode of the Craig Carton Show. “It appears bright lights, big city, the New York Giants are aligned and ready to hire Marcus Freeman as their head coach. We’ve seen that these coaches are getting younger and younger. A lot of these executives are getting younger and younger.

Marcus Freeman could very well be the Giants’ head coach within a week or two, which means that his last game would have been months ago. And they probably would have wished they had played in that Pop-Tarts Bowl,” Johnson added.

Notre Dame’s season unexpectedly ended after it wasn’t chosen by the CFP committee as one of the top 12 teams for the playoffs. Unhappy with their omission, the Irish announced that they won’t participate in the bowl game. That means their season finished with the Week 14 game against Stanford, which Notre Dame won 49-20.

Since then, Freeman’s name has been linked to various head coaching vacancies both in CFB and in the pros. Behind the scenes, however, Notre Dame has already gone into retention mode. According to On3 Sports analyst Eric Hansen, there is growing confidence that Freeman and his agent, Clint Dowdle, will eventually find common ground on a revised contract that keeps him in South Bend long-term. Hansen added that athletic director Pete Bevacqua has shown little resistance to reworking the deal, signaling institutional urgency rather than hesitation. While it was easier for Notre Dame to dissuade interest from its rivals in college, that becomes difficult when an NFL team comes calling for its head coach.

The New York Giants fired Brian Daboll in November 2025 after a poor start to the season and appointed Mike Kafka as its interim head coach. Since then, various names have been linked to the job, but none bigger than the 39-year-old Irish head coach. That interest is not merely speculative. Multiple NFL insiders, including reporting from The Athletic, indicate that Freeman is firmly on the Giants’ internal shortlist as the franchise begins shaping its formal interview process. Dianna Russini has reported that Freeman is expected to “garner interest” from multiple NFL teams once the coaching cycle accelerates in January.

The New Jersey-based franchise hasn’t found stability ever since head coach Tom Coughlin left in 2015. Analysts have consistently highlighted the Giants’ need for a CEO-type leader. Something Coughlin or Bill Parcells excelled at. Another requirement is to fuel Jaxson Dart’s growth and develop all the young pieces assembled by GM Joe Schoen.

ESPN’s Jordan Raanan echoed that sentiment earlier this week, predicting Freeman would be “part of the mix” for the Giants’ job based on conversations around the league. Betting markets have reflected that momentum as well, with SportsBetting.ag briefly listing Freeman as the odds-on favorite to land the position earlier this month

“We feel like Joe has assembled a good young nucleus of talent, and we look forward to its development,” owner John Mara said. Freeman is an ideal fit for the Giants. From creating a unified locker room to fostering accountability and motivating players after Brian Kelly left for LSU, the Irish head coach has been a blessing for Notre Dame. Brian Kelly left for LSU, but the Irish head coach has been a blessing for Notre Dame.

Freeman has completed four seasons as head coach of the Fighting Irish with a 43–12 overall record, winning over 78 percent of his games. He guided Notre Dame to a No. 2 national ranking and a national championship appearance in the 2024 season, and followed it up with a 10–2 campaign in 2025 that left the program on the outside of the CFP looking in after a late Selection Day reversal.

Factor in Freeman’s extensive defensive background, and it would almost certainly benefit the Giants’ roster, which has elite edge rushers like Brian Burns and young defensive players like Abdul Carter. Moreover, Freeman thrives under media scrutiny, having already led Notre Dame, one of CFB’s most talked-about programs.

And it’s not just the Giants. Even Freeman looks to be interested in the job.

Freeman may have dropped a subtle hint showing his interest

That perception only intensified after Freeman posted an Instagram story from Times Square during the height of the rumors, a move that quickly circulated among fans and league observers as a not-so-subtle nod to New York. While nothing official has followed, the timing did little to cool speculation.

Despite Marcus Freeman being a perfect fit for the Giants, many critics still argue about his inexperience in the NFL. The 39-year-old has a 43-12 record at Notre Dame and also led the team to a national championship final in 2024. However, succeeding in the NFL is a different ball game. Joe DeLeone, an NFL draft analyst, called Freeman a “very, very green” head coach, having just four years of head coaching experience. Even historical data signals caution.

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You take Urban Meyer as an example, or Chip Kelly, or even Steve Spurrier. The story is the same. It’s challenging to replicate college football success in the NFL, and rare examples of success, such as Jim Harbaugh or Pete Carroll, offer some hope. Even then, the names had some NFL experience under their belt. Carroll was the Bills’ DC in 1984, along with the Vikings’ DBs coach later on. Whereas Jim Harbaugh was the Raiders’ QBs coach early in his coaching career.

That doesn’t mean that Freeman won’t succeed at the Giants. It’s a trajectory worth watching for sure. For now, the Irish head coach looks to be locked on to the Giants.