The New York Giants suffered a disappointing 27-20 defeat to the Green Bay Packers in week 11 at MetLife Stadium in interim head coach Mike Kafka’s first game in charge. The loss marked the Giants’ fifth consecutive defeat and dropped them to a 2-9 record, but Kafka’s first game revealed a leader intent on reshaping the team’s culture after Brian Daboll’s firing just days earlier.

According to reporting from the New York Post, Kafka has now implemented significant changes to the players’ daily schedule. ” They now are off on Mondays and return to the facility on Tuesdays,” a tweet by insider, Paul Schwartz, revealed.

This decision focuses preparation time and removes the rushed atmosphere that characterized Daboll’s tenure. Coaches will have the chance to evaluate the game and take some of the emotion out of their presentation to the players.

And this is not the only change. As per Giants beat reporter Art Stapleton’s reporting, Mike Kafka has also moved the special teams meeting to early morning, which establishes a clearer flow to daily preparation.

Daboll’s schedule was found as chaotic. Stapleton further added on how players described the previous structure as creating a “scramble from walkthrough to special teams to practice,” leaving insufficient time to properly absorb information. While not every player embraced additional meetings, those interviewed welcomed the structural improvement and the intentionality behind Kafka’s new approach.​

Mike Kafka emphasized this philosophy during his first press conference, stating: “I think one of the most important things I stressed to the players was, we’re not just going to change stuff to change it for no reason. We’re going to have a plan and have an intent on what we want to emphasize that day.”

Despite all these efforts, on Sunday against the Packers, the Giants held a 20-19 lead entering the fourth quarter before Jordan Love connected with Christian Watson for a 17-yard touchdown pass with 4:02 remaining. Safety Evan Williams intercepting Giants backup QB Jameis Winston in the end zone with 36 seconds left sealed the defeat for the Giants.

Jameis Winston had made his first start in 11 months, completing 19 of 29 passes for 201 yards while rushing for a touchdown. And that wasn’t the only new development in the game. Mike Kafka had also benched rookie linebacker Abdul Carter for the opening defensive drive.

Mike Kafka makes a firm decision against the Giants’ rookie

Abdul Carter, the third overall pick from Penn State, who had been considered a Defensive Rookie of the Year contender despite disappointing performance, initially disputed the benching publicly.

“When the hate don’t work, they start telling lies!” he posted on social media, seemingly in response to reports that he had been asleep during a team walk-through at the facility.​

However, Carter later provided clarification, telling reporters, “I made a mistake during the week that was detrimental to the team. That was the consequence of it. Got to live with it.”

Mike Kafka called it a “coach’s decision” and declined to provide specifics, keeping the matter internal while making his disciplinary philosophy clear to the entire locker room.​

This action carried particular significance because the Giants were already without star outside linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux due to a shoulder injury. Despite the defensive depth concerns, Kafka’s decision was a signal that accountability would be enforced regardless of circumstances.

Mike Kafka had joined the Giants in 2022 as offensive coordinator under Daboll after spending five years on the Kansas City Chiefs coaching staff, where he played a pivotal role in developing Patrick Mahomes. Now, the question remains whether he will be able to carry the Giants the same way through the rest of the season.