Having to learn three different offenses in a matter of four years is not the ideal way for any quarterback to start their NFL careers.
But don't think that Daniel Jones would ever use that as an excuse for some of the team's struggles over the past few seasons.
With the new coaching staff comes a new offensive system, one that combines Brian Daboll's playbook from Buffalo with Mike Kafka's learnings from his days coaching under Andy Reid in Kansas City. Although it is still early days for the new Giants' offense, Jones can't help but think about the potential this unit has in 2022 and beyond.
"I am excited. When you look at both of those guys and the success they've had on offense and places they've been, that's been fun to watch," the quarterback told the Giants Huddle podcast. "It's exciting for all of us to be a part of that. We understand there's a lot of work to do before we get there, but we're excited for what we can be."
The fourth-year pro has some talented and intelligent players around him in the quarterback room. Tyrod Taylor signed with the Giants in March, making it his sixth NFL team since being selected in the sixth-round of the 2011 draft. Taylor will serve as Jones' backup, while Davis Webb was brought back to East Rutherford to help with Jones' development within the new offense.
"I think every year, it's evolved," Webb said about the offense. "It's always adapting, it's never the same. You're not going to see plays from 1980. You're going to see plays from this decade, and it'll continue to evolve. There's always going to be a new play each and every week. You're going to see someone across college football or high school or middle school, and if Dabes and Kafka like it, they might throw it in next week. It's always looking to improve, looking to adapt and adjust."
Webb was the Giants' third-round pick in 2017. After joining the Jets a year later, the 27-year-old spent the past three seasons in Buffalo, learning everything he could about Daboll's offense. Only a week after Daboll was introduced as head coach, Webb signed to return to the Giants, where Saquon Barkley, Sterling Shepard and Nick Gates are his only remaining teammates. But he's already built up plenty of confidence in his fellow quarterbacks.
"They've been working really hard. It's a great room," Webb said. "Tyrod with his experience playing in other places and learning multiple systems, he's been unbelievable. Then Daniel has been up and down when it comes to injuries. However, he's healthy right now. I think he's going to have his best year. I'm a big believer in him. He's one of the better quarterbacks I've ever worked with…
"He works very, very hard. He can throw it, he can run, he's very athletic. I've had the pleasure of being around a lot of good quarterbacks, whether that be Baker Mayfield, Pat Mahomes, Eli Manning, Sam Darnold, Josh McCown, Josh Allen, Matt Barkley, Mitch Trubisky, a lot of good players, and he's one of them. He's a good player."
It will be important for Jones to get as comfortable as possible with the new offense before the regular season. With the Giants having near perfect attendance throughout the entire off-season program, the offense has already been able to accomplish a lot with three weeks still to go before training camp. But Jones will be the first to tell you that the unit still has a lot of work to be done before they get to where they want to be.
"I think the most important thing is putting in the system, kind of laying the foundation for what the offense is," Jones explained of the spring checklist. "And then everyone learning it, understanding the verbiage, understanding how we're going to communicate, and getting an understanding of the plays and how we want to run them. We've gotten some valuable reps with all that stuff. I feel like we made some good progress, a lot of work still to be done."
View photos of Giants quarterback Daniel Jones throughout his NFL career.
Even Webb, now entering his fourth season under Daboll, had to study the new playbook a lot this offseason, as Kafka brought another dimension.
"It's a good combination of both. Obviously, the meat is probably in Buffalo, but there are some serious potatoes there in Kansas City," said Webb. "They've had some great offenses, obviously led by Pat (Mahomes), Andy Reid, Mike, there's been a lot of good offensive minds over there. It's kind of fun to learn new concepts, new ways of doing it, and Kafka has done a really good job installing it."
Prior to spending five years as a coach under Andy Reid in Kansas City, Kafka was an NFL quarterback from 2010-2015. He was primarily used as a backup, appearing in just four games for the 2011 Philadelphia Eagles. However, Webb believes Kafka's experience on a roster provides a significant boost to the entire QB room.
"The guy has played quarterback in the NFL before. Obviously, that goes a long way," Webb exclaimed. "He was a good quarterback at Northwestern. Then having [former Bills assistant] Shea Tierney in the quarterback room kind of running the meetings, and Coach Kafka installing the offensive plays has just been a good duo…
"I just think you can see it from the quarterback's eyes. You have other coaches who have maybe played different positions or offensive line, receiver, etc., it's a little different perspective when you're calling plays for the quarterback through those eyes. I think it goes a long way."
One of the most important things for a quarterback to do when integrating himself within a new offense is ensuring that he is on the same page with his wide receivers. The Giants have a lot of talent in their wide receiver corps, led by Kenny Golladay, Sterling Shepard, Kadarius Toney and rookie Wan'Dale Robinson.
Jones is aware that he and his receivers must be in sync throughout the summer in order for the offense to have the best chance at succeeding once the real games begin in September.
"Ultimately, it comes down to just reps," Jones shared. "Obviously, there needs to be the conversations in the meetings and watching film, you talk through certain situations and if this happens, we'll do this, if this happens, we'll do something else. But the most valuable thing you can do when you're trying to figure out that is play football and get the reps on the field, run the same play against a number of different coverages, a number of different looks.
"That gives you the chance to make those corrections to say 'We want to do this in this situation next time.' So, that's been big for us. This offense gives receivers a lot of freedom and gives them the power to get open, to win. I think they've really embraced that and done well so far this spring."
"Part of our culture is having smart, tough, and dependable players," Webb added. "That means learning new offense, learning new concepts and going out there and execute it within the hour of learning it. I think we have some smart guys around here, and we're going to continue to get better."
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