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Jim Fassel's failure this season has made him eager for another chance.
``I want to coach,'' Fassel said as he left the New York Giants after a 4-12 season. ``I have plenty of energy. I guess God gave me that. The way I live my life is positive and I have energy. My preference would be not to take a year off.''
If he wanted, Fassel could sit out next season and collect the $2.7 million remaining on his contract. But that's not in his plans.
Fassel, who forced his own firing with two games to go rather than wait for the end of the season, met with his players and staff early Monday morning, talked to the media and then cleaned out his office.
While he has not spoken to any teams about a job next season, Fassel said he will make himself available for interviews. He has most often been mentioned for the job in Arizona, which officially opened up Monday when the Cardinals fired Dave McGinnis.
Fassel was the offensive coordinator with the Cardinals in 1996.
He leaves still
pondering what went wrong in a season where the Giants were expected to make
a run at the Super Bowl.
A season-opening win over St. Louis only fueled the hype, but turnovers, penalties
and other mistakes left the team at 4-4 halfway through the season. A rash of
injuries led to eight straight losses and a 4-12 record, New York's worst in
more than two decades.
``We've had some good ones and some bad ones,'' Fassel said of his seven seasons in the Meadowlands. ``This one reached the bottom. It was a culmination of a lot of things, but there is no question, I feel like I can be a successful coach and that is what I want to be -- in this league.''
Fassel posted a 58-53-1 record, making him the third-winningest coach in Giants history behind Steve Owen and Bill Parcells. New York reached the playoffs three times under Fassel, highlighted by a Super Bowl appearance in 2001.
``I think he has left the
team and the organization in a better spot than it was when he got here,'' quarterback
Kerry Collins said. ``There are a lot of great memories, a lot of wins, a lot
of tough times. But all in all, it's been an overwhelmingly positive experience
for me and the team.''