Giants Head Coach Brian Daboll "Positioned to Fail" Claims Analyst

Will Brian Daboll overcome all the adversity?

New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll walks out of the tunnel prior to the start of the a game between New York Giants and Indianapolis Colts at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024. | Julian Leshay Guadalupe/NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The New York Giants are in an unenviable position. Following an abysmal 3-14 campaign, they are under suffocating pressure to get considerably better in a short period of time.

A grueling 2025  schedule of opponents that includes games against NFC North and AFC West teams poses some significant hurdles for the Giants and head coach Brian Daboll, who must figure out a way to work the same magic he did in his first season with the team in which he won AP NFL Coach of the Year honors.  

But there are questions–lots of them–and concerns. Can Daboll maximize the strengths of 36-year-old quarterback Russell Wilson? 

Will he be able to quickly develop a rookie quarterback the team will presumably select at some point in the 2025 NFL Draft? Who will he designate as the offensive play-caller? 

How Daboll handles these and other looming matters could determine whether or not he is still on the Giants' sidelines after this season.

Ben Arthur of FOX Sports foresees a bumpy road ahead for Daboll.

"Co-owner John Mara thrust Daboll (and general manager Joe Schoen) into an impossible situation at the start of the offseason when he said that he’s 'just about run out of patience' but also that the No. 1 priority is to find the 'quarterback of the future,'" Arthur said.

Daboll has a tall task ahead of him. 

Dec 29, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll reacts during the first half against the Indianapolis Colts at MetLife Stadium. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Changing a franchise's culture is always highly challenging, but it is much harder to achieve when ownership wants immediate results. 

Although Mara's frustrations match the fan base's, he must also look at the bigger picture.

The most logical way to sustain success is to find a viable long-term starting quarterback. Considering Wilson and Jameis Winston are short-term answers, New York will probably need to find its franchise quarterback in the draft.

The No. 3 overall pick is likely a few spots too low to land Miami quarterback Cam Ward, and interest in Colorado quarterback is waning. 

General manager Joe Schoen can take a crack at the position in the mid or late rounds, but that prospect will probably not thrive immediately. 

"Even if New York leaves the draft with the quarterback it wants — that could be Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart, for instance, as opposed to Ward or Sanders — how does Daboll get him the reps he needs for proper evaluation while balancing the need to win now with Wilson (and/or Winston) on a roster that doesn’t look much better than the one that finished 2024?" Arthur said.

"It’s a lose-lose situation for Daboll." 

The skepticism is understandable, but he might be underestimating the competency of the Giants' roster.

The squad looks more balanced and still features difference-makers like Dexter Lawrence, Malik Nabers, Brian Burns, Andrew Thomas, and Andru Phillips. It also welcomes newcomers Jevon Holland, Paulson Adebo, and Chauncey Golston.

A dependable quarterback should earn positive results with that caliber of roster. Russell Wilson can instantly upgrade the offense by limiting mistakes, allowing Daboll more leeway in his game plans. 

If the fourth-year head coach can squeeze all the productivity the Super Bowl XLVIII champion has left to offer, that might buy him enough time to mold Wilson's presently unknown successor.

It is a complicated and demanding operation, but if Daboll prevails, he might be a made man in this league.

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