The New York Giants‘ offense is primed for a breakout season in 2020. After two years with head coach Pat Shurmur running the offense, New York is taking a different approach in 2020. The Gmen hired Joe Judge as their next head coach and he assembled a phenomenal coaching staff. Judge made a splash on offense, hiring former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett as the team’s next offensive coordinator. With a new scheme in place, who on the Giants’ roster is primed for a breakout season in 2020?
Darius Slayton
Some might argue that Darius Slayton already broke out in his rookie 2019 season. But I will argue that Slayton has an opportunity to take his game to the next level in 2020. Darius saw his role increase week by week in the 2019 offensive game plan. In 2020, with a more reliable coordinator in Jason Garrett, Slayton will be featured in a prominent role.
Darius Slayton finished his rookie season with 48 receptions on 84 targets, totaling 740 yards and an impressive 8 touchdowns. Slayton’s knack for finding the end zone makes him a playmaking threat in the Giants’ new offense. Jason Garrett’s offense typically relies on an outside receiving threat, such as Dez Bryant and Michael Gallup. At 6-1, 190 pounds, Slayton can effectively fill that role.
Evan Engram
Evan Engram is another player that fans could argue has already had a breakout season. But has he really? Sure, Engram was dominant in his rookie season, totaling 722 yards and 6 touchdowns. But, in that season, Engram received 155 targets because, believe it or not, he was the only player on offense that could stay healthy. This was during that dreaded 3-13 2017 season that saw Odell Beckham, Brandon Marshall, and Sterling Shepard all miss significant time with injuries.
Since then, Engram has not looked the same. He is now known amongst the Giants fan base as the super talented player that cannot stay healthy. He has yet to play 16 games in a season and has seen his total games played decrease each year. Evan Engram hit a real low point in 2019, playing in 8 games and starting only 6 of them.
But once again, the arrival of Jason Garrett bodes well for Evan’s future. Garrett loves utilizing the tight end position. Giants fans should know this better than anyone, after watching Jason Witten tear our defense apart for over a decade. Hopefully, Garrett can utilize Engram in a similar fashion and make him a staple in the Giants’ offense. Witten once received 147 targets in a season, so maybe an increased number of targets will lead to increased efficiency and production from Evan Engram in his fourth season.
Kaden Smith
So what if I am wrong and 2020 is not the year that Evan Engram finally plays 16 games and breaks out? Well, then, expect to see backup tight end Kaden Smith have a breakout season.
Kaden Smith was one of Daniel Jones’s favorite targets towards the end of the 2019 season. He was given the opportunity to start in the final 6 weeks of the 2019 season and was impressive, hauling in 30 receptions for 267 yards and 3 touchdowns to end the year.
One could argue that Smith is actually a better fit in Jason Garrett’s offense. Kaden is known as a solid blocker from the tight end position and has a playing style more similar to Jason Witten than Evan Engram does. Engram will be used in a more versatile role, but Smith could end up being a mini-Witten of sorts. He has that big strong body, he is durable, and he can block as well as he can catch. Even if Evan Engram stays healthy this season, there is a good chance that Kaden Smith’s compatibility in Garrett’s offense leads him into a breakout 2020 season.