What We Can Potentially Expect from Mike Kafka's Impact on Giants Offense

The Giants offense will have a different look next season. The offensive elements that new head coach Brian Daboll will bring from Buffalo will hopefully impact the explosiveness of the offense.

But he didn’t stop there. He brought in Mike Kafka from the most innovative offense in the NFL, the Kansas City Chiefs. Kafka being a former quarterback and thought of as a fast-rising coordinator in this league, will get his opportunity to prove what he can do at that level. Kafka’s impact could be felt in two ways for this team: On the field and in quarterback Daniel Jones’ head.

On The Field…

There are many similarities between Buffalo’s offense and Kansas City’s offense; the difference is usually in execution. While the Buffalo version usually works short to deep, the Kansas City model seems to be touchdown to check down.

Kafka will likely implement play designs that force the defense to cover all three field zones, not just the short and intermediate areas (where Jones had most of his success last season), but deep as well.

The opportunity to take advantage of receivers who can win over the top, like Darius Slayton, John Ross, and Kadarius Toney, was not utilized much last season and has not been emphasized over the past few years with the Giants.

You should also see an uptick in receiver run plays. One of the elements completely underrated in their offense is their receiver run game. They run the ball with multiple receivers in their offense, and it gives them a chance to attack the edges in unconventional ways with misdirection plays, reverses, jet sweeps, and quick screens.

Tony and Sterling Shepard are receivers that possess the ability to run the ball, and you can expect them to add another in the draft. These multidimensional pass catchers are the wave, and the Giants will look to ride it. This will also help the traditional run plays when they incorporate motion into the run (something we previously discussed as a specialty of Daboll).

The screen game was also underutilized for the Giants during the previous coaching regime. Whether it is getting the ball out to the perimeter quickly or drawing aggressive defenses upfield to hit them underneath, the screen pass can be a way to jumpstart an offense when things are not going well.

The Giants never seemed to have that in their back pocket. Kafka will bring the ability to attack a defense via screens. On top of the two previously mentioned receivers, Saquon Barkley is a weapon in the passing game. It will be interesting to watch him be implemented into the screen game to help slow some of the best pass rushers in the NFL, which reside in the NFC East.

In Daniel Jones' head…

Kafka will empower Jones in two ways; he will tell him to trust his legs and give his receivers a chance to win.

Both the Chiefs and the Bills have quarterbacks who can be dynamic with their legs, but they are employed differently. While Daboll is undoubtedly bringing some designed quarterback runs to supplement Jones's ability as a runner, Kafka will probably preach that it is up to Jones to use his legs to escape peril and pick up chunks of yards when the pocket collapses.

This is what Patrick Mahomes does so well. He sees an area where the defense has broken down, whether it is containment that has been lost or a rush lane unoccupied, and he exploits it for significant gains and keeps the chains moving.

More importantly, he draws the attention of those who should be in coverage to him, and that quick second they are checking for Mahomes to run is the time needed to allow a receiver to win on a route. Kafka will press this issue with Jones and make sure he understands that he only helps the offense when he becomes a runner after the play breaks down.

The other body part that he will try to get Jones to trust more is his arm. Some quarterbacks are risk-averse by nature. Others become risk-averse because they've made mistakes in the past.

Those mistakes become mental and prevent quarterbacks from doing what they need to do to succeed in the passing game, which is to trust their elite-level receivers. Kafka will try to instill the confidence in Jones that players make plays, and just like he can make plays, so can his receivers.

Mahomes doesn't simply possess arm talent and belief in himself; he believes in his receivers. He is constantly letting them know that he is coming to them and that he is going to give them a chance.

That belief instills confidence in his teammates and makes them work a little harder to pay off his faith. There were many times over the past couple of seasons where Jones had a chance to cut it loose and just held the ball too long, and the moment was lost. It will be Kafka's job to identify those moments and help Jones grow from them. It could be a much more dynamic offense next season if he can do that.

Some believe that the scheme didn't do Jones any favors over the last few years, but many believe that his issues are between his ears. That has to be Kafka's goal as offensive coordinator. Figure out ways to fine-tune Jones mentality in-game. If he can, this team is closer to a playoff birth than many believe it to be.

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