Jim Harbaugh and Jim Schwartz don't meet again until Sunday night, but Tom Coughlin and Greg Schiano provided a nice undercard of squabbling coaches at the Meadowlands.
Fox cameras captured Coughlin jawing at Schiano seconds after the New York Giants' 41-34 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. According to The Star-Ledger, Coughlin was upset that Bucs defenders attempted to tackle Giants quarterback Eli Manning during a kneel-down in the final seconds.
On NFL Replay
NFL Replay
will re-air the
New York Giants' 41-34 win over the Tampa BayÂ
Buccaneers in Week 2 on Tuesday, Sept. 18 at 8 p.m. ET.
"I don't think you do that," Coughlin said, according to the New York Post. "You don't do that in this league. Not only that, you jeopardize the offensive line, you jeopardize the quarterback. Thank goodness we didn't get anybody hurt -- that I know of. A couple of linemen were late getting in."
Manning told reporters after the game that he took "a little bit of a cheap shot" on the play, according to the Post. Wide receiver Victor Cruz made several mentions of a "cheap shot" during his time with reporters. Defensive lineman Justin Tuck said the play "won't be forgotten."
Bucs defensive tackle Gerald McCoy said the players were just doing as they're instructed, and Schiano confirmed that, saying it's something his Rutgers teams always did.
"I don't know if that's not something that's done in the National Football League," the first-year Bucs coach said, according to the Post. "What I do with our football team is that we fight until they tell us game over. And there's nothing dirty about it, there's nothing illegal about it. We crowd the ball like a sneak defense and try to knock it loose. ...
"We're not going to quit -- that's just the way I coach and teach our players. If some people are upset about it, that's just the way it goes. I don't have any hesitation. That's the way we play. We play clean, hard football until they tell us the game is over."
Coughlin clearly appeared to be the aggressor in the exchange, but Schiano wasn't holding back on return fire. Respect your elders, Greg.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @danhanzus.
