On what basis? I see no indication that the players on this team dislike him. He's clearly learned and is not the same guy he was previously. If anything, he's too lenient, has NOT been the disciplinarian needed amongst a bunch of opinionated big-mouth veterans who were on the team and feel they run it, dating back to before his arrival.
I heard him interviewed yesterday; in no way was he anything but class re: poor player performances. He said only the truth re: Manning's putrid bad throws and Burris's ineptitude-long overdue. That he hasn't said it more clearly speaks to the fact he's actually been too easy on them, not the reverse.
It's actually quite the opposite. He's too strict, which is why his players hate him. Here is a sample:
Union Drops Grievance Against Giants CoachBy Mark Maske
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, April 8, 2005; 11:13 AM
The NFL Players Association dropped a grievance that it filed on behalf of three New York Giants players who were fined by Coach Tom Coughlin after showing up early to a team meeting just before last season, but not early enough to suit Coughlin.
The case was to be heard by an arbitrator late last week, and a union official even traveled to New York for the case. But the players involved -- cornerback Terry Cousin and linebackers Barrett Green and Carlos Emmons -- didn't want to pursue the case. Cousin was released by the Giants this offseason and signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and didn't want to travel to New York to resolve a dispute over $500, sources familiar with the case said.
Coughlin fined the players $500 apiece after they arrived a few minutes early to the meeting, only to find it already under way. Coughlin later said that his meetings start five minutes early, so anyone who arrives after that is late. Coughlin's taskmaster ways didn't always sit well with Giants veterans last year in the coach's first season with the team, and the club lost eight straight games after a 5-2 beginning and finished the season with a record of 6-10.
Players Association chief Gene Upshaw clashed with Coughlin last offseason when several Giants players informed the union that Coughlin's workouts were violating league rules. The league and the union investigated and determined that the Giants indeed had violated the rules pertaining to the length of workouts, and the team was punished by losing two days of workouts last May in which the players were barred from showing up at the club's training facility. But Upshaw said during Super Bowl week that he and Coughlin had patched up their differences.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A36941-2005Apr8.html