Giants' Brian Daboll Winks At Rumors of Friction With Fellow Coach

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If there's tension among coaches in New York, they're at least handling it like men.

Drama rocked the New York Giants early Sunday, before taking on the New England Patriots at home, when an 'inside scoop' by longtime NFL reporter Jay Glazer proposed that head coach Brian Daboll and defensive coordinator Wink Martindale have been at odds with each other.

Glazer spelled it out plainly, stating a case that Martindale could be an in-season firing, or offseason firing (at worst).

"These guys are in a bad place," Glazer commented on Daboll and Martindale's relationship. "Bad place to the point where I don’t see them actually continuing their relationship after the season, maybe not even during the season. It could be a mutual parting of the ways."

Well, the coaches' reported 'differences' appeared to be forgiven and forgotten after New York's defense delivered a superb performance against the lowly Patriots, propelling the Giants to a 10-7 win.

Daboll gave Wink his credit on Sunday, before the media, and in the locker room.

After the game, Daboll celebrated Martindale's performance by awarding him the game ball. He also sided with the coach before reporters.

Talk about a wink and nod to all these reports of tension.

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Speaking with the media after the tight win, Daboll received questions regarding the rumors of tension in the Giants' building.

He played them off cooly rather than feeding the hungry NY media. "The biggest argument Wink and I have had is who has the last piece of pizza," Daboll responded.

Daboll's response injected the right amount of levity to at least hint that Martindale won't be losing his job during the year, barring any unforeseen fights.

WATCH:

In what could have been another step toward tanking on Sunday, the Giants (4-8) used their home momentum and pride behind third-string QB Tommy DeVito to engineer a major team win against a familiar foe in the Patriots. DeVito tossed for 191 yards (17-of-25) and a touchdown.

Considering the Giants' offensive unit remains one of the team's greatest failures this season, Daboll's reported beef with Martindale didn't lend much support for the offensive head coach's side, either. So better to quash any signs of conflict in a season already past the point of saving.