PHOENIX — It’s a new coaching staff shaping the New York Giants’ offseason, and having the quarterback situation sorted has meant a completely different kind of offseason.
Last year at this time, the Giants didn’t have Jaxson Dart. Twelve months later, Dart is at the center of the team’s future plans, as the franchise finds itself in an ideal scenario: a young quarterback on his rookie contract.
“It goes back to the surplus value that you’re getting in that right now in terms of the price point, and taking advantage of that window,” general manager Joe Schoen said this week at the NFL annual league meetings. “The quarterback is obviously the centerpiece. So we’re going to continue to build around Jaxson.”
That process began last offseason with the Giants trading up to select Dart with the No. 25 pick after signing Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston in free agency. The Wilson experience lasted three games before Brian Daboll switched to the rookie. But with the Giants parting ways with Daboll midway through last season, John Harbaugh and his new coaching staff will be tasked with moving Dart along his professional career.
From the get-go, Harbaugh has been open about building his team around the quarterback. For Harbaugh, that’s creating a “high-powered offense.”
“It starts with building a system that’s going to be elegant and enough to handle all the complicated things that go with attacking defenses nowadays, but simple enough that the players can operate it in action, in battle, in the heat of battle … in a real effective way,” Harbaugh said. “One of the many great things about Jaxson Dart is he does so many things so well. I mean, he can live in a lot of different worlds.
“If you watch the offenses that we’ve had over the last many number of years, is it’s built around a lot of different elements. There is a lot of different elements that Jaxson can play in. Power run, drop back pass, quarterback driven stuff, RPOs, quick ball out-type of completions, throw the ball downfield, throw it off the play-action. I’m not sure what he really can’t do.”
During free agency and with the draft still to come, the Giants have been adding pieces to the puzzle. Isaiah Likely was their most notable free-agent addition. The tight end spent his first four seasons with the Ravens, so Harbaugh is plenty familiar with his game and his potential. Likely will step into an expanded role after playing alongside Mark Andrews in Baltimore, where Likely never tallied more than 477 receiving yards in a season. But Harbaugh has a vision for Likely, just as he has an idea of how the tight end will aid Dart.
“I think Jaxson is going to really like him running the routes and being in his line of vision,” Harbaugh said. “He’s got a big catch radius. He can make plays after he makes a catch. He can get up field. He can make people miss. He can run people over. He’s a very good perimeter blocker. You’ll see that. That will be good for our run game.”
Likely will join Theo Johnson in the tight end room; there’s sure to be more 12 personnel on the docket for the offense. The Giants added fullback Patrick Ricard, who can block for running backs Cam Skattebo and Tyrone Tracy. And there’s star wideout Malik Nabers, who is recovering from a torn ACL and meniscus, with Darius Slayton and free-agent additions Darnell Mooney and Calvin Austin III providing depth behind him.
But having a quarterback to build around has put the Giants in a different position than in years past, and it’s at least starting a conversation around the validity of selecting running back Jeremiyah Love, who is one of the top prospects in this draft. Schoen told reporters that the Giants are in a different situation than they were a few years ago dealing with the Saquon Barkley negotiations, and having a quarterback allows them to take the best player available.
But it will all go back to Dart. Harbaugh, along with offensive coordinator Matt Nagy and passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach Brian Callahan, will be emphasizing the basics as they first get to work.
“I think anybody that’s ever played any kind of sport understands that,” Harbaugh said. “The ability to take the fundamental things and pay them forward when it means the most, that’s probably the next step for a quarterback especially, and I fully expect him to make that leap.”