Finally, there is something to be happy about for the New York Giants.
They actually won a game of football against a very good team, beating the Los Angeles Chargers 21-18.
Add to that that it was rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart’s first career start.
There is more. Andrew Thomas played the entire game. The Giants won the turnover battle, dominated possession – 35:28 to 24:22 – and the defensive front had a pass rush win rate of 68%. That is the highest ever in the NFL for any team since that stat was recorded in 2017.
That all sounds a bit too good to be true. And it was…
The Giant loss…
Unfortunately, the cost was losing superstar wide receiver Malik Nabers for the season with an ACL tear. The silver lining is that it is early in the season and he has a good chance to be ready for Week 1 next season.
But that does not help us win now. It could ultimately result in the head coach and general manager losing their jobs.
But enough of the doom and gloom. Unfortunately, injuries are part of the NFL and it just has to be ‘next man up’.
Rather than break the whole game down, I am going to focus on the debut of Jaxson Dart for this week’s game review.
Do not get carried away just yet
How often do we see a back-up quarterback come into a game or start their first-ever game and cause a massive upset?
There is no game footage for the opposition to prepare for, the offensive gameplan gets totally changed and surprises happen.
Mike White always comes to mind for me in these situations. Other examples include Jalen Hurts, Cooper Rush, John Walford, Brock Purdy, Sam Howell, Michael Penix Jr and J.J. McCarthy, a real mixed bag of talent.
Fans of these teams often label the quarterback the next Tom Brady and then they never win a game in the NFL again. And then we realise they are a back-up for a reason.
What was different with Dart over Wilson?
This week, the offense looked very different to the first three weeks under Russell Wilson, becoming very RPO and run heavy.
The deep ball – 20 yards or further – only appeared twice and were both incomplete. There were three other deep incompletions but these were nullified by penalties.
What was more present though were passes over the middle of the field. This is likely due to the fact that Dart is three-and-a-half- inches taller than Wilson.
That allowed him to see the middle of the field better, extend plays with his legs and stand in the pocket that split-second longer.
The threat of designed runs for Dart helped to keep the defense on their toes.
And with Cam Skattebo running through everyone, the Giants establish a running game, which in turn opened up the passing game.
Positives
No turnovers for Dart put the Giants in a great position to win. There was a botched snap that was recovered by Andrew Thomas but beyond that, no ball can be considered a ‘turnover-worthy play’.
There were no dropped interceptions or passes that could have been picked off. Dart seemed confident in his ability and the occasion was not too big for him.
Right tackle Jermaine Elumanor stated the kid had a calmness in the huddle he had not seen in a rookie quarterback before. He was efficient on third downs and the team converted seven of 15 attempts, which will do nicely.
Dart was blitzed eight times and finished 6-of-8 for 32 yards and a touchdown on those plays. He remained calm under pressure and protected the ball well when he was hit on a blitz.
I felt the coaching staff did a great job of simplifying the playbook. The performance reminded me of former Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito: not many big plays, tough running, very few turnovers and a radiating swagger about him.
The difference here is Dart’s ceiling and expectations are much higher than Tommy’s were.
Negatives
The kid is too tough for his own good. He does not need to be stiff-arming middle linebackers down the field after a long gain and he needs to learn to slide.
The toughness and grit shown will be excellent on third and fourth downs, and for game-winning drives. The rest of the time, he needs to reduce the hits on the body.
There were definitely some sacks that should not be credited to the O-line as a mistake. Dart near-enough ran into three sacks and needs to be more aware to either start running or to get rid of the ball.
It felt like the coaches did not trust Dart to pass in the end zone. This is not a criticism of Dart; he will progress with more time spend on red zone offense in training.
It was great to see a shovel pass in the red zone though and it led to a touchdown. A well-designed play is something I thought I may never see.
Overall grade
I give Dart an B+ for his first start. There were some unnecessary sacks taken, a botched snap on the Giants’ own goal-line and no big plays with his arm.
But as mentioned, he protected the ball and the Giants performed well on all three phases to get the dub.
Next up is a winnable game against the New Orleans Saints. But now there is film on Dart and no Malik Nabers for the rest of the season, so it will be tough for the kid.
It is very exciting to watch though. If we can get back to 2-3, who says Dart cannot lead us to a primetime win in Week 6 against the Eagles on Thursday Night Football?
The season is still on life support, Giants fans, but there is always hope.
