While it's not very well publicized, Tom Coughlin is a notorious grudge holder. Sadly that thing kind of goes hand in hand with a control freak/micro manager type. While he had to curb some of that because he was alienating his players, he has had, from what I've heard around the college ranks, a long standing beef with Frank Beemer.
From what I've gathered though different contacts, apparently when Boston College hired Coughlin, good old Tom apparently wanted to play a game of "How Bad Do You Want Me?" as it was very clear that Coughlin very badly wanted the Boston College head coaching gig. Beemer apparently at the time was also courted and didn't rebuff the courtship, that Coughlin felt he should have, as Coughlin apparently did so years earlier for Beemer when Coughlin was a WR coach and seen as a coach in the rise under Bill Parcells.
From what I'm told, David Wilson and VT's Beemer are very very close and during the Wilson draft, apparently Coughlin lobbied hard for Jerry Reese to trade up and select Boston College's Luke Kuechly ( imagine him roaming at linebacker for the Giants....) and had his eye on Alshon Jeffrey. At the time, the Giants really need an infusion in a lot of different areas, including receiver and O line and linebacker has just never been a big priority for Reese.
Do I think Coughlin is a good coach? Absolutely. Do I think he understands that you probably need to coach in the pros in a much different manner than you can in college? No, not a chance. Some players respond well to being challenged. Some players you need to reach out to in a different way. Some players you need a veteran player to mentor them instead of more coaching. I think it does not help that Kevin Gilbride persists in play calling without seemingly making much consideration to his actual personnel. If your O line is having problems, you don't ask them to consistently hold their blocking past the league average. You don't force your WRs to run routes that take 5 seconds to develop when your QB has about 2 seconds before he's turf paste. Eli Manning does not do well when rattled, he doesn't have the saavy or pocket awareness of a Big Ben, so don't play call like you have Big Ben there dodging pass rushers.
I've seen a decent amount of film on Chris Snee, esp of late, and if Coughlin can be merciful to what are the bounty of deficiencies in his son-in-laws play but still throws him out there, I think he can be a bit more merciful to David Wilson. Apparently from what I heard, Steve Tisch made the call to clip Del Ray Scott the first time, because there was no valid reason to have a sub replacement level player chewing up close to 50 percent of the RB snaps.
I've said this many many times in the Shark Pool about "organizational stability" It means more than having that franchise QB1, it means more than having that elite head coach who can handle a team. Unless "All Ships Sail In The Same Direction" there is no point and no hope for that franchise. There must unit morale and unit cohesion in all facets of the franchise, from the O line to the scouting department to the front office. Eddie DeBartolo didn't want to cut Tim McKyer, he really didn't want to do it because the 49ers were, at the time perilously thin in the secondary, but everyone on the coaching staff wanted him out. They said they'd rather lose without him than win with him. The Giants should have never rostered a player that Coughlin simply did not want. On the flip side, Coughlin has to make do with what he has at the given time and place, that's a part of coaching. Like many coaches with ring pedigree, many feel they should have a large voice in personnel decisions.
Do I feel sorry for David Wilson? No. He's a professional. No one is promised opportunity in the game, when you get a little daylight, you need to make something of it, even if your coach hates you. Produce to the point where you can't be benched. Sometimes you just need to have a little Steamin' Willie Beamen in you. Wilson has to learn to drive it like he stole it. Keep all the girls creamin'. Get all the fans screamin'. Gonna defeat him? You're dreamin'
I feel sorry for Giants fans. I've been to some Giants games when I lived in NY way back and there are some true blue and hardcore fans there, some whose whole families have rooted for the Giants for generations. They deserve better than to see their team in disarray because Coughlin took that Parcells quote about picking the groceries if you are going to do the cooking a little too much to heart.