The New York Giants are making a change at quarterback, starting Jameis Winston over Russell Wilson.
The report, first by Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News and quickly confirmed by Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network and Adam Schefter of ESPN.
This is the first change of the Mike Kafka Era following the firing of Brian Daboll, who had favored the less-erratic Russell Wilson at quarterback. However, Wilson has looked very skittish in his recent appearances, looking unsure of his reads and trying to avoid mistakes rather than make plays. A desire to “not lose” and keep games “respectable” (to use Ed’s word) defined the end of Daboll’s tenure.
Winston, on the other hand, is an incredibly decisive quarterback who — for better or worse — is always willing to attack the secondary and throw the deep ball.
Kafka is obviously looking for an offensive spark with Jaxson Dart in the concussion protocol, and with Malik Nabers and Cam Skattebo on the IR. Winston is an infectiously charismatic and positive leader who can rally the locker room with the Giants’ young leaders injured. Kafka could also be considering the fact that there’s no tape of the Giants with Winston at quarterback, and could be leaning into the element of surprise against a heavily-favored Packers team in his first game as head coach.
Additionally, Winston did show a connection with WR Jalin Hyatt, who’s been a non-factor in the Giants offense through 10 games. We could see more of the speedy receiver with Winston under center.
The decision to start Winston at quarterback comes with the caveat that it’s in the event that Dart doesn’t clear the concussion protocol by Sunday. Our own Ed Valentine is in the Giants facilities today, and we’ll have more updates on Dart’s status as the day unfolds.
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