Mike Kafka, Wink Martindale don’t have head coaching demand anymore after Giants’ flop

A year ago, they were a hot commodity. Now they’re not even lukewarm . Mike Kafka and Wink Martindale, fresh off contributing to the Giants’ surprising run to the playoffs last season, both were candidates for vacant NFL head coaching jobs in the offseason. Now Kafka, the Giants’ offensive coordinator, and Martindale, their defensive coordinator, are twisting in the brisk January Meadowlands wind as this season winds down to Sunday’s finale against the Eagles at MetLife Stadium, wondering whether they’ll still be employed with the team next season.

Same for special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey. This is what happens when you’re a part of a 5 11 team. This is what losing does. It puts everyone on notice. And none of the three phases of the game has gone well for the Giants this season. Offensively, the Giants rank 30th in the league in points scored with just 239, an average of 14.9 per game.

They’re ranked 30th in the league in total yards and last in passing yards with just 2,580. Defensively, the Giants have yielded 397 points, an average of 24.8 per game, which is the fifth most. They’ve allowed an alarming 24 rushing TDs, second most in the league, 4.7 yards per carry, which is ranked 30th in the league, and a total of 2,118 rushing yards, which ranks 29th.

The Giants’ special teams, too, have been inconsistent all this season, failing to produce enough game changing plays. The team’s coordinators speak to reporters on Thursdays each week, which made this their final appearance for this season — and possibly for good. When Kafka was asked if he expects to be back next season, he went into Belichickian “on to Cincinnati’’ autopilot mode.

“Really, my only focus is on today and this week and preparing our guys the best we can for Philadelphia,’’ he said. Sign up for Inside the Giants by Paul Schwartz, a weekly Sports+ exclusive. Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy .

Thank you Enjoy this Post Sports+ exclusive newsletter! Asked, in a follow up, if he’s spoken to head coach Brian Daboll about his future, Kafka responded, “Our sole focus has just been on Philadelphia.’’ Asked, in light of his interviews for head coaching jobs a year ago how he feels about his future, Kafka said, “I’ve got a lot of confidence in myself as a coach, but my focus has only really been on Philadelphia, today and this week.’’ Kafka interviewed with the Panthers, Texans and Colts for their vacancies after last season and was believed to be a finalist for the Carolina and Houston jobs.

Martindale interviewed with the Colts and was in the mix for that job. “Do I expect to be back? I don’t know why I wouldn’t, but you have those conversations after this last game and you sit back and you can reflect and you take the emotion out of it,’’ Martindale said Thursday when asked about his future.

“Those answers will come later on in the week as far as which way we go. Whenever you are not winning, how this league works, inevitably, you are going to have conversations, tough conversations. How that works out is how that is going to work out.’’ Several weeks ago, a Fox Sports report stated that Martindale and Daboll were in a “bad place’’ and Martindale wasn’t expected to last the season.

Well, he did. But will he last into next season? The report came shortly after Martindale went public about how hurt he was when safety Xavier McKinney suggested that he didn’t listen to players’ in game input. Daboll, who detests the airing of dirty laundry, surely didn’t like Martindale perpetuating a story he’d have rather seen die quickly.

Daboll coaches his players and his coaches hard and he’s unapologetic about it. Martindale clearly has a sensitive side and possibly doesn’t take to being coached hard. Asked if he believes him and Daboll can “still have a healthy working relationship moving forward,’’ Martindale said, “Yeah, sure.

Sure. Always can.’’ Where this leads is anyone’s guess, but the Giants’ defensive players don’t want it to lead anywhere but with Martindale remaining on the team, and that complicates matters if Daboll decides to move on from him. “We all love him and we all have a great relationship with him,’’ McKinney told The Post on Thursday.

“He’s a great DC. He’s very aggressive and he instills confidence in all of us. It’s fun to be coached by him.’’ Cornerback Adoree’ Jackson said “it would be a little disheartening’’ if Martindale wasn’t back next season. Linebacker Bobby Okereke, who’s on the third defensive coordinator of his career, said, “If there’s an opportunity to have some continuity and build off this season it’s always a positive.

We all love Wink and we all want him to be back.’’ It is, of course, not that simple, the disappointing results being what they are, leaving the head coach with decisions to make. “If you don’t produce, you don’t have a job,’’ veteran offensive lineman Justin Pugh told The Post. “That’s the business of football.

Coaches are in the same exact mode as all of us as players. One year, you’re given this great new contract and the next year you could be getting fired. We all know the business we’re in. It can go from being great to awful. “Quickly.’’.