Giants Look to Successfully Launch Mike Kafka Era in Week 11 Clash with Packers

Plus what's the story with Jaxson Dart's health and more Week 11 storylines.

Mike Kafka's tenure as interim head coach of the New York Giants begins this week as the team gets ready for its home game against the Green Bay Packers. | Lucas Boland-Imagn Images

It’s not quite the start of a new era for the New York Giants, who are back to work following a rather eventful 48 hours that saw team ownership dismiss head coach Brian Daboll, but the next eight weeks (seven games plus the bye) are going to be instrumental in determining what direction the Giants pursue after yet another lost season.

Mike Kafka, previously the assistant head coach/offensive coordinator, takes over as the interim head coach, a role in which he’ll be auditioning to convince general manager Joe Schoen and team ownership that he can handle it permanently. 

But Kafka might have to navigate his NFL head coaching debut without starting quarterback Jaxson Dart, who suffered a concussion.

By all accounts, Kafka is an easy-going personality who isn’t nearly as fiery as Daboll. 

That doesn’t mean that he won’t get heated if things aren’t done correctly, but the initial feeling is that Kafka might just infuse a greater sense of calm that, in turn, can lead to better productivity amidst a Giants team that is reeling.

New York will host a Green Bay Packers team that has given up 26 points in its last two games, both losses. Can the jolt of the Giants' coaching change propel Big Blue to some better and, more importantly, complete football starting this weekend?

We’ll find out in a few days; in the meantime, here’s a look at the top storylines of the week. 

What’s New?

New York Giants helmets | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

As already noted, the Giants have a new, albeit interim, head coach in Mike Kafka. 

While major changes shouldn’t be expected right away, there will likely be some tweaks to the Giants’ processes to improve results.

For example, how much different will the Giants' practices and daily schedules be moving forward? 

A quick look at the media schedule for the week shows that the Wednesday practice will be a bit shorter than usual, with the Thursday practice rescheduled to run for 2 hours and the Friday session for 90 minutes. 

As for the structure of the practices, the media won't see it, as the viewing period ends after about 20 minutes. 

We’ll have to rely on what the players tell us afterwards to ascertain any true changes to how practices are run. 

Who’s Calling Plays?

Will Mike Kafka continue to call the plays? | Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

Kafka is probably going to retain the play-calling duties. Still, it will be interesting to see how that structure sets up, given that he now has greater responsibility for what happens on the sideline during the game. 

The last time an inexperienced head coach decided to call plays was Ben McAdoo, who had the huge menu card and who was so engrossed in the sequence of events that he often ended up planning his next moves while the defense was on the field. 

Will Kafka end up in the same rut, or will he better manage play-calling and the game? Will he hand off the play calling to Shea Tierney, the team’s quarterbacks coach?

Jaxson Dart’s Status

Nov 9, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) rushes the ball against the Chicago Bears during the second half at Soldier Field. | Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images

When we last left Giants rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, he had exited the game in Chicago with a concussion. 

Dart has said on numerous occasions that he hates to miss practice and games. Still, this time around, he has no choice, as he’s at the mercy of his body’s recovery time and the sign-off of an independent neurological consultant.

Recovering in a week from a concussion isn’t unheard of if the concussion is mild, but it’s also not something that happens frequently. 

Kicking It

Kicker Younghoe Koo | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Last week, the Giants went with Younghoe Koo as their kicker while Graham Gano (neck) was left at home to receive treatment for his herniated disc. 

While Koo’s kicking went without a hitch, the team still added another kicker, Ben Sauls, to its practice squad. Could this potentially mean that Koo is going to be signed to the active roster, Gano is going to IR, and Sauls is the fallback plan?

Health Watch

New York Giants center John Michael Schmitz Jr. | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

Besides Dart and Gano, the Giants have other injured players whose statuses need to be monitored.

Will, for instance, cornerback Paulson Adebo finally be ready to roll after missing the last three games with a knee injury? What about center John Micahel Schmitz (shin)? And what of any new injuries that came out of the Bears game besides Dart?

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