Don't Make Jaxson Dart the Offensive Savior
New York Giants Turn To Jaxson Dart As a New Era is Beginning
There is a new era in New York as the Giants are turning to first-round draft pick Jaxson Dart as the team prepares to take on the Los Angeles Chargers this Sunday.
This was a move that was to be expected by the New York Giants, but nobody knew it would happen so soon. Many thought it would be Week 5 against the New Orleans Saints, but there has been no denying that the Giants offense with Russell Wilson under center has not been good.
Daboll did himself no favours on Monday afternoon when he didn’t name a starting quarterback and told the media, “We’re doing what we normally do, which is watch the tape. We’re just watching it with the players right now.”
But when asked by a reporter in a follow-up question about a quarterback change, Daboll replied, “I’d say we’re evaluating everything.”
The Giants were already considering making a move, had already made the move, or were planning to make the move on Monday afternoon. They had seen enough.
There was a reason why Jaxson Dart started as QB2 on the depth chart for the Giants to begin the season. He showed promise during the preseason as the offense clicked and moved down the field. It helped that head coach Brian Daboll and the coaching staff called plays to match Dart’s skill set. But he was able to execute.
There was a palpable positive energy from the New York Giants players, not only on the field but also on the sidelines. So the players believed in the rookie quarterback from Ole Miss. Again, Daboll had confidence in Dart to enter regular-season games if Wilson were to get hurt. But now he is the starter.
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Several people and media personalities were calling for Jaxson Dart to start right away. The Giants wanted to develop him and let him watch from the sidelines. But there was a reason he was QB2 and not Jameis Winston. The Giants felt he was ready for the bright lights of The Show.
But the Giants offense, outside of the Dallas Cowboys game, where the Giants took advantage of a Cowboys defense that is not very good and resembled the USC Trojans defense under Lincoln Riley, the Giants offense has put up a total of 15 points in the other two games. Something had to change at the quarterback position.
Wilson against the Washington Commanders didn’t look comfortable under pressure. Yes, he can still throw a great deep ball, but he isn’t a dual-threat quarterback anymore. And against the Kansas City Chiefs on the Sunday Night Primetime game, Wilson looked lost, especially in the red zone.
The Chiefs game was a winnable game for the Giants, too. However, Russell Wilson was playing it safe and made a poor decision with the football, as the game was close. Go back to the fourth quarter and the ball he threw out of the endzone. Not only was it an incomplete pass, but it was an intentional ground penalty, which means a loss of yards and a loss of down.
Wilson was missing players. There was something off about the offense. Malik Nabers, you could see, wasn’t happy on the sidelines. He is the best player on the team and didn’t see a touch until the fourth quarter.
The Giants probably should be 2-1, but they are 0-3. And something had to give eventually for Jaxson Dart to get in. But don’t expect Jaxson Dart to come in here and light the world on fire and fix the Giants offensive problems.
Nabers told reporters this isn’t just a QB issue. It is the same sentiment he had last year in November. The young man from LSU also knows the play calling needs to be better, along with the protection to allow the quarterback to get the ball out of his hands and put it in the hands of the Giants best player.
So there is a lot more going on than just the QB under center. The play calling is just too vanilla. While Cam Skattebo is electric at running back and has become the starter, the rookies should not be the ones saving the job of the head coach.
And if this is a move for Daboll to save his job, then he should have gone to Jameis Winston. There's no need to hinder the kid’s development if he isn’t ready. What was the point of signing Winston and Russell Wilson? Right it doesn’t matter, but now it's up to the kids to carry the New York Giants.
It is the dawning of a new age with Jaxson Dart, Cam Skattebo, and Malik Nabers taking charge of Big Blue. But don’t expect them to solve the problems that continue to plague the New York Giants.