The New York Giants’ offense sank to the bottom of the NFL in 2024, ranking 31st with 16.1 points per game. Last season was the first season of Brian Daboll’s head coaching tenure with the Giants in which he called plays. The results were underwhelming, to say the least, prompting speculation that playcalling duties could be handed back to offensive coordinator Mike Kafka for the 2025 season.
Could Brian Daboll give up playcalling in 2025?
Daboll was asked about a potential playcalling change during the Annual League Meeting in Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday. He didn’t give a definitive answer, but did reveal the timeline for when he will make his decision.
According to Dan Salamone of Giants.com, Daboll told the media that he wants to go through OTAs and make a decision on the playcalling duties going into the preseason games. Dan Duggan of The Athletic reported that it was Daboll himself who brought up the idea of delegating playcalling duties during a meeting with team co-owner John Mara at the end of the season:
“Daboll circled back and said he raised the notion of giving up to play-calling during the end-of-season meeting with Mara,” Duggan reported on X. “He said it was a brainstorming session about ways to improve. I’d be surprised if Daboll gives it up at this point.”
The Giants need to fix their offense
Despite the offense’s struggles last season, the Giants did surprisingly little to upgrade the unit’s talent in free agency. They re-signed veteran WR Darius Slayton but did not add another playmaker or upgrade the offensive line. They did, however, sign backup QB Jameis Winston and presumed starting QB Russell Wilson.
Essentially, the Giants are banking on an upgrade at quarterback to solve their problems. Seven quarterbacks took the field for Big Blue across the last two seasons. The poor and inconsistent performances resulted in the offense falling flat on its face in back-to-back years.
Wilson could stabilize the unit, however, by reintroducing the deep ball and being far more proficient at the line of scrimmage. Daboll told the media that he watched every snap of Wilson’s career in preparation for free agency, so the head coach seemingly has a detailed plan on how to utilize his new quarterback’s skill set.
