One of the key reasons the New York Giants hired former Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll to be there new head coach is because of his experience developing quarterbacks. Witnessing the unbelievable job he did with Josh Allen, ownership envisioned Daniel Jones experiencing a similar jump, even if their skill sets are quite different.
Jones has struggled in his first three years as a professional quarterback, tossing just 10 touchdown passes last season under Jason Garrett’s leadership. Despite quality tangible traits, a massive dip in his production suggests that the Giants have done a poor job building a system around him, including a competent coaching staff.
After firing Garrett midseason and letting Joe Judge go at the end of the year, ownership has put their trust in Daboll to turn things around, building a scheme that maximizes player strengths instead of hiding them behind an outdated strategy.
Current ESPN analyst Rex Ryan spoke highly of Daboll, stating that Jones will thrive under Daboll’s leadership, which is likely music to John Mara and Steve Tisch’s ears.
“That’s a tremendous coach,” Ryan told Darryl Slater of NJ.com. “A guy with a great work ethic, but a great f—ing dude. I really like Brian, and I think he’s going to do a great job.
“I’m excited to see him — and I know he said don’t compare Daniel Jones to Josh Allen. But I’m not kidding you: I know for a fact Brian Daboll really likes Daniel Jones. And I do, too. He’s an athlete. He’s got the physical skill set you look for. And he’s got the mental makeup. So I think the kid is going to do well with Brian.”
Jones’s strengths have been hidden by poor schematics and offensive line blocking. As we’ve seen, it all starts with the coaching staff, and if they cannot bring the best out of players, it doesn’t matter who you have at quarterback. The Giants, fortunately, have plenty of draft capital to spend on talent for Jones’s protection scheme.
Transitioning to a spread-style offense should do Jones plenty of good, allowing him to throw down field and not settle for short routes, staring down receivers as we’ve seen in the past. However, avoiding injury should also be a priority for the coaching staff, as Jones has missed eight games over the past two years, picking up a concussion, neck injury, and hamstring injury during that time span.
Most of these issues have resulted from overcompensating for poor offensive production, but if the Giants can run a disciplined unit that executes properly, Jones shouldn’t have to do too much and put himself in harm’s way.