New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll has much invested in the present and future in rookie QB Jaxson Dart.
The New York Giants duo of head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen enter the 2025 NFL season with a clear mandate… Show significant progress or you’ll be shown the exit.
Well, one NFL writer doesn’t exactly predict a giant turnaround for this organization entering a make-or-break in New York.
Giants Rank Near Bottom of Worst to First Rankings from USA Today
Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz of USA Today ranked all last place finishers across the eight different divisions in the NFL in his ‘worst to first’ article on Monday, which placed the New York Giants in seventh out of eight teams when ranking squads with the best odds to quickly turn things around in 2025.
Middlehurst-Schwartz wrote, “Keeping a hot-seat coach often has catastrophic results, and the Giants might be the latest to rue retaining their current regime for another year. Short of Wilson engineering a stunning late-career renaissance or Dart getting an early look and dazzling, there’s not enough ammo here for a substantial turnaround.”
The marriage between head coach Brian Daboll and general manager Joe Schoen is currently in the counseling phase, which is a analogy for this partnership atop the Giants organization is in a desperate state entering the 2025 NFL season.
If the quarterback situation was the only thing working against New York in the NFC East, a quick turnaround would feel a bit more achievable. Yet, the Giants reside in the same division as the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles and the NFC runner up Washington Commanders entering the 2025 NFL season.
Middlehurst-Schwartz added, “If the Giants fall in an early hole – which seems likely given that the first month brings matchups with the Commanders, Cowboys, Chiefs and Chargers – how long will Brian Daboll keep Dart on the shelf? A shoddy offensive line looks ill-equipped to support either option and could spoil any visions of a more prolific passing game. Then there’s the matter of the NFC East. Between the Eagles and Commanders being entrenched as established contenders and the Cowboys possibly in line for a bounce back, the climb out of the basement appears steep.”
Could the New York Giants Shock Everyone and Win the NFC East in 2025?
Despite playing in a division loaded with quality football teams and questions at quarterback, there are some reasons to believe Daboll could get things pointed back in the right direction in 2025.
Middlehurst-Schwartz wrote, “While the Giants resisted blowing things up at the very top of the organization, the team took a far more aggressive tack to reconfigure the quarterback room, which welcomed Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston and first-rounder Jaxson Dart. With Wilson set to take over as starter, Big Blue will no doubt be more aggressive in attacking downfield, with Malik Nabers and Darius Slayton looking more than up to the task of hauling in the veteran’s signature “moon balls.””
The offense optimism is nice and all, but the real reason the Giants could make some noise in 2025 is on the defensive side of the ball.
Middlehurst-Schwartz detailed, “More big plays also seem in store for a defense that fortified its greatest strength in its pass rush, as adding Abdul Carter alongside Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux could make this one of the league’s most effective crews at creating chaos. And if Dexter Lawrence again plays at a level that will put him in conversation for NFL Defensive Player of the Year, New York’s front could be a legitimate problem.”
If the offense manages to get anywhere near league production combined with a potentially elite defense, the Giants could shock the NFL world and push for a playoff spot in 2025.
