Giants’ Malik Nabers rips Mike Kafka’s late-game decisions in Lions loss

Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers, out for the season with a torn ACL, ripped interim head coach Mike Kafka — without naming him — after Sunday’s 34-27 overtime loss at the Lions.

While watching from home, Nabers didn’t like what he saw from Kafka — who still calls offensive plays — late in the game.

Nabers tweeted and then deleted this rant:

Sometimes I think they b makin us lose on purpose! Cause it’s no way, bro you throw the ball instead of runnin it to make em burn 2 timeouts?? then you dnt kick the field goal.??? Then they have to go down and score!!! Football common sense!!!! Am I missing something?

Here’s what Nabers was referring to:

The Giants led 27-24 late in the fourth quarter. They had first-and-goal at the Lions’ 4-yard line with 3:19 left. Kafka called a run that went for 2 yards. The Lions burned a timeout.

Then Jameis Winston threw the ball on the next play. Incomplete. So Detroit didn’t need to use a timeout there.

On third-and-goal from the 2, another run — for a loss of 4 yards. Another Detroit timeout — its second of three in the half.

What did Kafka do on fourth-and-goal from the 6? Well, as you know, he decided to have Winston throw the ball into the end zone. Incomplete. A field goal clearly would have been the wiser choice there.

So the Lions got the ball back on their own 6, down three, with 2:54 left. They drove for a 59-yard field goal to send the game to overtime. They used their final timeout on that possession.

And then they beat the Giants in the extra session with Jahmyr Gibbs’ 69-yard touchdown run on the period’s first play, dropping them to 2-10 and sending Nabers into venting mode.

Kafka likely won’t be the Giants’ head coach next season, when Nabers will return from his injury. Might Kafka stick around as offensive coordinator, to develop Jaxson Dart? If so, that could make for some juicy drama.