Pete Prisco Says No to Lane Kiffin as Brian Daboll’s Replacement Despite Coaching Jaxson Dart in College

After having seemingly taken one too many chances with the health of Jason Dart, the New York Giants have officially terminated their employment of Brian Daboll. Although when you consider the fact that he’s now produced three consecutive 2-8 starts to the regular season, perhaps this was always destined to happen.

For better or worse, however, the Daboll era is finally over, and everyone is beginning to shift their focus away from him and towards his would-be replacement. From Lane Kiffin to Brian Flores, there is certainly no shortage of potential suitors for New York, but Pete Prisco is already ruling out the former in this head coaching hunt.

“I think it’s highly unlikely,” Prisco announced about Kiffin on CBS Sports. According to the veteran columnist, there are several reasons why the college coach won’t be making a return to the next level, and many of them are simply bigger than the game of football.

“Lane Kiffin has changed. His father passed away, and I think he’s become a changed guy,” Prisco observed. “He’s happy in Mississippi. I’d be astounded if he went back to the NFL. Just because he coached Jaxson Dart doesn’t mean he’s going to go to the NFL, so I’d say ‘no’ on that one,” he added.

Between Daboll’s firing and the emergence of Dart as a potential long-term solution to the Giants’ quarterback woes, fans have been clamoring for a head coach who can utilize Dart’s talents while also keeping him safe. The 22-year-old has taken more than 75 hits and has been evaluated for a concussion on four separate occasions throughout the nine games of his career.

This is where it’s worth remembering that Dart was enthusiastically looking for contact even when he was at Mississippi with Kiffin. After all, it’s that very same physicality that helped to make him a personal favorite of Jon Gruden during his 2025 NFL Draft evaluations.

Suffice to say, a head coaching change alone isn’t going to be enough to dissuade Dart from diving headfirst into defenders. That’s just how he prefers to play football, and when you pair that with the aforementioned adversity that Kiffin has gone through in recent times, it seems safe to say that he shouldn’t be viewed as “the guy” for the Giants.

Although Prisco does believe that Antonio Pierce is a name to keep an eye on through the coming weeks. “The guy won a Super Bowl for the Giants,” Prisco noted. “I would talk to Antonio Pierce. I’d bring him. I’d want to hear his plan… He is a leader of men. I think people would respond to him.”

Regardless of who the Giants end up choosing as their next head coach, the good news is that they have more than enough time to do their due diligence and make the right decision. Seeing as they believe themselves to have already found their next franchise quarterback, there’s certainly no need for them to rush when it comes to either their search or the idea of putting Dart back on the field.