That doesn’t mean signing Matt Nagy is a bad thing for quarterback Jaxson Dart.
And ultimately, even though the OC has the entire unit under his control, Dart’s presence will continue to take on the utmost importance in terms of where the Giants are headed offensively and what it will all look like.
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“I think Matt Nagy, I think the way he runs an offense will fit Jaxson Dart,” NBC Sports analyst Chris Simms told NorthJersey.com and The Record on Tuesday morning. “Jaxson Dart has that ability to create play and football and I think Matt Nagy is going to improve that because he will understand the player he has.
“It’ll give the Giants some structure and some rules, and some offensive plays here,” Simms said. “But it’s not going to erase the natural ability that God gave him and his sense of the game, that’s what I like.”
Nagy, 47, has been part of an offense established and led in Kansas City by NFL coaching legend and multiple Super Bowl winner Andy Reid, which has featured Patrick Mahomes.
While he did not call plays and hasn’t since his days as head coach of the Chicago Bears, Nagy has played an integral role within Kansas City’s offense.
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“Somebody’s going to get a gem,” Reid said of Nagy, referring to his chances of being a head coach this cycle.
This was the most impactful move Harbaugh had to make in assembling his coaching staff after Todd Monken, his OC with the Ravens, moved to Cleveland, where he accepted the head coaching job.
Establishing the right structure both schematically and from a personal perspective is paramount to the Giants’ success under Harbaugh, especially in year one. And if he can take a page from what Mike Vrabel did in New England, when he brought Josh McDaniels back as OC for Maye, finding the right mix of experience, innovation and likeability could be the difference in Dart taking his game to another level.
During his 18-year tenure in Baltimore, Harbaugh hired five offensive coordinators who came with NFL head coaching experience: Cam Cameron, Jim Caldwell, Gary Kubiak, Marc Trestman and Marty Mornhinweg. He also hired Todd Monken, who had been a college head coach at Southern Mississippi.
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Nagy was a college quarterback at Delaware. He is a defender of the West Coast offense and likes his quarterbacks to navigate the pocket with the ability to make plays downfield with their arm, as well as keep defenses behind them with their legs. That speaks to Dart’s talent.
Aside from Mahomes, Nagy’s time as head coach with the Bears was with a group of quarterbacks nowhere near the best of their generation: Mitch Trubisky, Chase Daniel, Nick Foles and Justin Fields.
What is the Giants’ next offensive move?
Now that Harbaugh has his OC, the Giants will continue to strengthen their offensive staff. He interviewed Shane Day of the Chargers and Alex Tanney of the Colts for OC; one of them could be a perfect fit as quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator. Could another Harbaugh lieutenant, former OC Greg Roman, most recently fired by Jim Harbaugh, come to the Giants as running game coordinator?
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Former Wake Forest and Fordham coach Dave Clawson has a close relationship over the years with Harbaugh and has been mentioned as a possible senior offensive assistant.
Dart is nowhere near his ceiling as a player, which is why the Giants are happy to make it a priority to help the 22-year-old take his game to the next level and beyond.
Seemingly every big play Dart made as a rookie last season came from matching his mind to his physical tools. He has impressed with his instincts, his knowledge of what will happen on the other side of the ball and the timing of shots he knows he can make.
Dart has a knack for making difficult looks seem routine. He promised in the summer that he wouldn’t be a robot, and he stuck to that throughout the season while staying away from negative plays, striking a balance that has the entire organization excited about the potential of what’s to come.
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“You build your team around your quarterback. You build your team around your players and what they do well,” Harbaugh said. “I like the way he (Dart) plays. I like his talent, his skills, all the things he’s accomplished, but more than that, I like who he is and what he’s about.”
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: What Matt Nagy Hired as NY Giants Offensive Coordinator Means for Jaxson Dart