NFL
By: Mark T. Wilson
In a weird twist of fate, Brian Daboll and Joe Schoen may be safe for at least another season with the New York Giants, regardless of what happens this year. The reason for that is Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo.
Before their latest victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, the whispers were still there. Following that win, everything changed. This is not a season where the Giants’ owner should be looking at wins and losses. With Malik Nabers out for the year, this is the season of opportunity. Daboll doesn’t need to make the playoffs to get off the hot seat; all he has to do is put his two dynamic rookies in the best spot to produce.
Imagine Dart and Skattebo having great rookie seasons, and yet, the Giants decide to move on from both the coach and GM. That’s not fair. If it were not for them, neither player would be there. This season began with Russell Wilson and Tyrone Tracy Jr., then seeing what they possibly have in Dart towards the end or even next season.
However, fate intervened, and Daboll had the smarts or guts to make a QB change early in the season. With that call, the Giants managed to beat the previously undefeated Los Angeles Chargers in the same game Nabers went down, and then two weeks later, handed the Eagles their second defeat of the season.
What will also keep them off the hot seat is that the city has gotten behind Jaxon Dart and Cam Skattebo. The young players have brought an edge that the New York Giants haven’t had since the Eli Manning and Michael Strahan days. With the New York Jets still in decline, the Giants have become the go-to team in NYC.
If anything, Daboll and Schoen have at least earned another season with a healthy team to see if they can work magic. But it’s a little deeper than those two players. Despite their record, truth be told, the Giants have drafted pretty well during the Schoen and Daboll era. Hell, even some of their trades and free agent signings have paid off.
Where would that defense be without Abdul Carter and Brian Burns? The offense may have found its TE in Theo Johnson. What they need now is to put it all together, but without their best players in Nabers, it will be hard to judge the progression of the duo. Give them one more year.
If the fans don’t make the call, then look no further than the players. Did you watch that Thursday game and see the chemistry not only between Dart and Skattebo but between Dart and his coach? There is something there.
Here is a coach who took a chance on two players that many would have passed on. They are intertwined. They deserve to see how far they can take it this year and next.
There is no doubt that Daboll and Schoen entered the season with their jobs on the line in large part due to the lack of wins, and then you add in the Saquon Barkley situation, they needed a miracle. With Nabers going down and the play of the two rookies, a blessing was given.
2025 is not about winning for the New York Giants; it’s about growth, learning, production, and chemistry. If they continue to play and coach the way they have so far since entering the starting lineup, this 4-some will get another chance to show what they can do in 2026. And it will be rightfully deserved.
