Did the Giants‘ firing of Pat Shurmur stop Daniel Jones‘ development? In 2019, after the Giants finished the season 4-12. And the front office opened the door for HC Shurmur after his second season with the team. The team had to start all over again with Joe Judge. Shurmur’s departure had an impact on Jones’ growth as a QB, as he was drafted by him. So when Daniel could not get enough time to adjust and grow under the system that had drafted him, the Giants knew they messed up.

Well, what’s done with Daniel cannot be turned back. But it surely did change things internally within the NY Giants brass. You could say it’s the reason that coach Brian Daboll still has his job after two disappointing seasons. After Pat’s dismissal, team owner John Mara said in a statement, “It’s certainly not all Pat’s fault. He did a lot of good things here, in particular, his role in selecting and training Daniel Jones.” Following a season with Joe Judge, the Giants shifted their focus toward stability with Brian Daboll. Throughout this past season and even into the offseason, there were murmurs that Daboll might be on the verge of losing his job.

Now, much of the attention turns to how GM Joe Schoen and Daboll perform in the 2025 season. Then again, maybe the heat was never as intense as it seemed. As Art Stapleton of PIX11 Sports puts it, “You know, I’m not sure if they guarantee, but I don’t know if their seats were as hot as everyone would like to make it seem.” He points out that while pressure existed, Mara isn’t necessarily taking the firing option again. Well, not unless the situation looks hopeless. Stapleton also highlighted when Mara regretted firing Shurmur in Daniel Jones’s rookie year. “John Mara was very public in saying that they felt as though they screwed up Daniel Jones by firing Pat Shurmur after one year after drafting Daniel Jones.“

And now that the team has drafted QB Jaxson Dart, they won’t be putting him in the same position as Jones. “So certainly with a rookie quarterback, if Jaxson Dart, they put all this time. And he’s looking pretty good at the end of the season and they feel confident, it’d be pretty silly to fire Brian Daboll. And then really put Jaxson Dart back on square one,” added Art Stapleton.

As the Giants hope to set a stable foundation with Dart. His former college coach, Lane Kiffin, also chimed in, sending a strong message.

Ole Miss coach sees big things ahead for Jaxson Dart in NY

Jaxson Dart played three seasons at Ole Miss under head coach Lane Kiffin. Coming from USC, Dart was roped in by Kiffin and molded into a QB who was selected 25th overall in the NFL Draft this year. Now, there is already excitement about how Dart will complement WR Malik Nabers on the gridiron. 

Recently, Dart’s coach, Kiffin, weighed in while speaking to the New York Post. Coach Lane is confident in Jaxson’s potential and says that he will work incredibly well with Nabers. “I think he’ll work so hard from Day 1 with him, and he’ll fly to wherever he is in the offseason to work with him and get down their throws and timing and everything,” said Kiffin. “They’ll be an amazing pair for a long time to come.“

During his time with Ole Miss, Dart was a starter in 38 games over three seasons. He had three back-to-back winning seasons. The 21-year-old was impressive with the deep throws, completing 42% of them, and had a great adjusted completion rate of 47.7%. Over his three-year career at Ole Miss, Dart racked up 10,617 passing yards and 72 touchdowns. He also rushed for 1,498 yards and 12 touchdowns. Looking at these numbers, you can tell where Kiffin’s confidence in the quarterback he developed is coming from. “They’ll be an amazing pair for a long time to come,” Kiffin explained, referring to the Dart and Malik Nabers pairing.

Now, all eyes will be on whether Dart and Nabers can turn that promise into a partnership that defines the Giants’ future.