In these slow weeks leading up to training camp, New York Giants fans won’t have much to do other than evaluate our off-season moves and hope for a brighter season come fall. Many will celebrate the drafting of Saquon Barkley at #2 overall, the very definition of a win now move that when combined with a rebuilt offensive line makes our offense look like a top flight unit in 2018.
Yet, there will be many who spend a lot of time wondering if we made a mistake passing on a QB in an NFL draft that set a record with 4 signal callers selected in the first 10 picks. Those fans can’t be blamed…I was/am extremely high on Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen and they both were available to us since Cleveland just couldn’t help being Cleveland by drafting Baker Mayfield.
Here’s a little trivia that might those fans feel better…wanna guess who pushed Mayfield out of his starting job at Texas Tech? New York Giants 2nd year QB Davis Webb, that’s who.
Everything about our off-season tells me that Gettleman and the brass not only believe in Eli, but they also believe in Davis Webb. Not only as a future starter, but as our immediate backup, ready to step in and pilot a loaded offense. Before we get into Webb as a player, let’s break down management’s belief logically.
The Giants not only passed on a QB in round 1, they didn’t bring in a seasoned veteran to push Webb for the backup spot (Alex Tanney is about as ‘seasoned’ as Wonder bread). Eli is an ironman, but I doubt Gettleman would gamble his job by going into the season without a viable backup.
He knows their value. During his five-year tenure in Carolina, Cam Newton was always backed up by Derek Anderson, who led the Browns to a 10-6 record back in ’07 and has filled in nicely whenever needed. After taking a close look at Davis Webb’s practice and college tape, Gettleman must like what he sees enough to feel comfortable with Webb starting in the unlikely event Eli gets injured.
Let’s take a look at some Webb tape:
Davis Webb. Is good at football. #WebbFacts🕸 pic.twitter.com/zWQc8Lvg7J
— The Big Blue Center (@BigBlueCenter18) November 17, 2017
You can see from that highlight reel that Webb is a classic pocket passer. Standing 6’5†and weighing in at 229lbs., Webb displays impressive arm strength, good pocket movement, and strong accuracy. Per Mike Mayock on NFL.com, “Davis Webb’s got a live arm. He drops it in the bucket. Moves well enough, quick release, big arm.†His senior year at Cal, where he replaced Jared Goff, was by far his most impressive, throwing for nearly 4,300 yds & 37 td’s in only 12 games. Those physical traits and his senior year performance are what promted the Giants to select him with the 23rd pick of the 3rd round in last year’s draft.
As is true with most any young QB, based on what we saw in college there are aspects of his game that need improvement. Although he is highly intelligent, he needs to speed up his decision making and improve at reading defenses pre-snap. During the play, at times he stares down receivers and/or doesn’t ‘look-off’ safties, resulting in more contested passes from savvy defensive backs. His footwork can be better too…balls sail on him if he doesn’t keep his feet in rhythm.
By all accounts, he improved in all these areas during practice last season. As he didn’t play in the regular season last year, here are a few clips of him training just to give you an idea of how he looks:
Arm strength?
Davis Webb does not have below average arm strength.#WebbFacts🕸 pic.twitter.com/IYiO2Ljdrj
— The Big Blue Center (@BigBlueCenter18) March 13, 2018
Footwork?
Davis Webb does not have below average footwork. He also has SUPERB throw on the run capability and can throw 20+ yrds on a scramble with unfailing arm strength. Franchise QB level talent. #WebbFacts🕸 (Video courtesy @Tonyrazz03) pic.twitter.com/1Nk9HtRkco
— The Big Blue Center (@BigBlueCenter18) March 21, 2018
Accuracy?
Davis Webb can throw to the left side of the field with excellent awareness and near perfect alignment of the base of his body to limit the time it would take one to throw. #WebbFacts🕸ã‚(Video courtesy of @Tonyrazz03) pic.twitter.com/QwTt2lnWkx
— The Big Blue Center (@BigBlueCenter18) March 19, 2018
Of course, these videos really don’t tell us much. If your QB doesn’t look like a hall of famer practicing against air, then you really don’t have a QB. There’s no way to know for sure how Davis Webb will fare once the bullets are flying. The hope is that the team surrounding our starter is good enough that he doesn’t have to be an MVP on day 1.
But I wanna offer a final thought for those who still wish we went QB in round 1: Whether or not you agree with our off-season agenda, you must admit it was masterfully executed. The organization seems to be making the right decisions lately, so I’ll put my trust in Davis Webb because the New York Giants already have.
