After the New York Giants finished the season with their 10th victory but out of the playoffs, coach Tom Coughlin delivered a message to his team, and one to his critics as well.
In his postgame address to the players recorded by cameras for Showtime's "Inside the NFL," Coughlin praised the Giants and attacked those who thought anything less of the team's 10-6 postseason-less finish.
"Outstanding," Coughlin said in the locker room at FedEx Field after the 17-14 win over the Redskins. "Outstanding finish to the ballgame. We did our part, OK? That's all I can ask you to do. Hey, from the bottom of my heart and everybody's, we have a 10-6 season! A 10-win season in the NFL, OK? And they can kiss my ass, OK? They can line up and kiss my ass. It's not an easy thing to do."
A player is then heard saying, "Can we quote you on that, coach?"
Coughlin replied: "You can quote me on a lot more than that. The priest is here or I'd say a few more things."
In the last three weeks, the Giants wasted opportunities to make the postseason. They squandered a chance to potentially win the NFC East with their 38-31 collapse to the Eagles. The following week, they were crushed 45-17 in Green Bay, where they'd had the chance to clinch a playoff berth outright.
They closed out the season with a win but failed to make the playoffs when the Packers beat the Bears and secured the final NFC playoff spot.
Following the win, Giants ownership immediately announced that Coughlin would return as coach, putting an end to speculation about his job status. Ownership said it will sit down with Coughlin to discuss his contract, which has one season remaining on it.
Ohm Youngmisuk covers the Giants for ESPNNewYork.com. You can follow him on Twitter.