The Giants have finished the first round of interviews for their head coaching vacancy. Former Broncos running backs coach Eric Studesville met with co-owner John Mara, general manager Dave Gettleman and assistant general manager Kevin Abrams at the team's facility on Wednesday.

Studesville is the sixth candidate to interview, joining Giants interim coach Steve Spagnuolo, Patriots coordinators Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia, Vikings offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur and Panthers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks.

While the Giants brass contemplates a decision, fans have identified a clear favorite. McDaniels received 46 percent of the votes in an NJ Advance Media poll with over 3,400 respondents.

Wilks (23 percent), Shurmur (14 percent) and Patricia (11 percent) were the only other candidates to draw real consideration. Spagnuolo got just six percent of the vote, while there were no votes for the unproven Studesville.

McDaniels' options are the Giants, Colts or remaining with the Patriots. Wilks reportedly has interviews with the Cardinals on Wednesday and the Colts on Thursday.

Shurmur has interviewed with the Cardinals and Lions. Patricia had been reported as the favorite for the Lions opening, but the New York Daily News reported on Wednesday that "all signs are pointing to" the Patriots defensive coordinator getting the Giants job.

The Giants can't hire McDaniels, Patricia or Shurmur until their teams are eliminated from the playoffs. The Patriots host the Titans on Saturday night, while the Vikings host the Saints on Sunday afternoon in Divisional round matchups.

Wilks, Spagnuolo and Studesville are eligible to be hired immediately. Wilks is the only candidate from that group drawing interest from other teams.

Dan Duggan may be reached at dduggan@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DDuggan21. Find our Giants coverage on Facebook.