Pat McAfee (Photo via “The Pat McAfee” Show)

ESPN’s Pat McAfee teed off on an NFL head coach and accused him of throwing his quarterback under the boss following a tough Week 8 loss.

Pat McAfee donned a panda costume for today’s edition of his hit show. He was joined by former Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, who also served as defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears and Baltimore Ravens.

So Pagano, who was highly regarded among his guys in Indy, has first-hand knowledge of the importance in not publicly criticizing your players too harshly.

It’s understandable that Pagano and McAfee took issue with what New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll said about quarterback Daniel Jones after Monday night’s 26-18 road loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Daboll said that Jones felt “terrible” about a costly turnover in the fourth quarter and that he owned up to the mistake. Some folks ripped Daboll for seemingly blaming his quarterback.

Pat McAfee took issue with Daboll’s post-game comments, accusing him of throwing his quarterback under the bus.

“Did Daniel Jones come out, when he was speaking to the media, and talk about that two-point play that (was botched) and then he went and executed? You could clearly see how upset Daniel was after that debacle — the swinging gate [or] whatever that was. Did he come out and bash his head coach? I don’t think so…“When you start taking shots at each other — not good.”

“I don’t think you need to go public with that kind of information,” The kid knows it,” Pagano said.

Pagano coached Pat McAfee in Indianapolis from 2012 until the latter’s abrupt retirement in 2016. The Colts reached the postseason three years in a row (2012 to 2014) in that period, going as far as the 2014 AFC Championship Game.

Pat McAfee & Chuck Pagano Hit The Nail On The Head

With all due respect to Daboll, McAfee and Pagano couldn’t have said it a whole lot better here. It’s just never fair to the players when you publicly criticize them, especially when a team like the 2024 Giants is struggling this badly.

It’s well-known that former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was never easy to play for. As hard as he was on his players, Belichick never publicly ripped on them to the media. Daboll, who worked on Belichick’s staff in New England, should know better.