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I am a huge die hard NY Giants football fan in Jerusalem Israel. Defensive Coordinator Shane Bowen is considering for Linebacker Abdul Carter to play off ball linebacker.

Will that make it more difficult to get a real legitimate and serious pass rush on Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott in Dallas on the road? What must the Giants do early to set the tone early in the game? – Jonathan T.

New York Giants linebacker Abdul Carter could see snaps at inside linebacker this week.

New York Giants linebacker Abdul Carter could see snaps at inside linebacker this week. / Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Hi Jonathan. Thanks for your letter. No, I don’t think moving Abdul Carter to offball linebacker will impact the pass rush that much. Inside linebackers can rush the passer, after all.

If the Giants want to set the tone early in the game, they need to score on the opening drive and sock the Cowboys in the mouth. I’d like to see them use the running game to set up play action and then see where things go from there. 

Who are the players who can say, with credibility, “Enough! Do your freaking job! Play like crazed dogs!”? — Howard D.

Commanders QB Jayden Daniels (5) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against New York Giants linebacker Brian Burns.

Sep 7, 2025; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against New York Giants linebacker Brian Burns (0) at Northwest Stadium. / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Howard, I think a better question is which players DON’T we need to say that about, because I think that list is far shorter than the one you’re asking for. Brian Burns, Malik Nabers and Abdul Carter all brought the juice. 

So did Cam Skattebo, Jermaine Eluemenuor, Paulson Adebo, Tyler Nubin and Jevon Holland. I think you can make a case for Kayvon Thibodeaux as well. The rest of the team? I thought they were sleepwalking.

Jeff, the press box accommodations are the same across all stadiums in the NFL. There are TV monitors in the press box. Some reporters will bring their own TVs/radios to watch since the TV monitors within the seating area are on mute. 

There are pre-game and halftime meals. And we all have access to real-time stats similar to what the general public can access. 

Never say never, but I’m going to go with no on this one as of right now. I think the first course of action is to try and get everyone to play better rather than panic and make a move that potentially depletes at one spot to salvage another.

Did the Giants fire Brian Daboll and I missed the announcement? Seriously, I know things look bleak right now but let’s see if they can pull themselves out of this rut. Daboll does have a silver bullet in his holster if things continue to look bad: Jaxson Dart 

Domenic, years of poor drafting have more than caught up to this team, and I think that’s the biggest problem. It started late in the Jerry Reese era and has continued. 

If you don’t get decent production from your draft class, it’s going to force you to overspend in free agency which in turn costs you when you get into a bidding war to retain talent you do want to keep. 

It’s a vicious cycle that I’m not sure this team has broken quite yet.

Sancho, Dart was hand-picked by Daboll. Maybe it’s just the optimist in me, but I would like to think he won’t push the kid out there before he’s ready just to save his job.

And I don’t think ownership will tell Daboll he can’t play Dart, not if the coach thinks the kid is ready. Contrary to what some people believe, the Maras and Tisches want to win games.

Do you feel keeping our Head Coach and GM during this season is worth it? I think our season is a loss–you saw the look on the Head Coach face and he looked lost the whole game. –  Terry P.

New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) could be the savior if the offense continues to struggle.

New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) could be the savior if the offense continues to struggle. / Kevin R. Wexler-NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Terry, what’s done is done; there’s no stuffing the toothpaste back in the tube right now. They’ve played one game. I’m old enough to remember people feeling the same way when the Giants started 0-2 in 2007 and how people were ready to ship Tom Coughlin and Eli Manning to outer space. 

I’m not saying this 2025 Giants team is Super Bowl-bound, but let’s take a step back and see how the next couple of games go. We can always revisit the question next week if the Giants lay another stinker.

As I said in another reply, Daboll’s silver bullet is Jaxson Dart. If things continue to go south, we will see the kid sooner than I think anyone anticipated.

I know it’s only one game, but is this front office and coaching staff just incompetent in terms of the rosters they construct?  As you pointed out, as poorly as Russ played,  a different QB wouldn’t have changed the outcome.  Where do we go from here? – Dave R.

Is New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson cooked or can he get this offense cooking?

Is New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson cooked or can he get this offense cooking? / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Dave, I think there’s enough blame to go around for how last week turned out, and that includes the players and all the little mistakes made in the execution of the plays.

My biggest concern is the lack of energy that Malik Nabers said was missing. There should be no excuse for a lack of energy on the sideline in a battle, and I’m not really sure who that’s on.

As for where we go from here, we let this play out and see what happens when the dust settles.

The results were undoubtedly frustrating, but is the Giants’ O-line that bad, or is Washington’s D-line pretty good?  Secondly, is the criticism of Wilson valid, given that he was pressured on 50% of their plays? – Peter D.

New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson

Sep 7, 2025; Landover, Maryland, USA; New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson (3) runs onto the field prior to the game against the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium. / Amber Searls-Imagn Images

Pete, regarding your first question, I think you have to give some credit to the opponent. As for Wilson, I do think the criticism is valid.

There were several other quarterbacks in Week 1 who faced more pressure than Russ, and yet they worked themselves out of it. I hope that he has a better game this weekend.

I think it’s still too soon to say for sure, but what I said on the Locked On NFC East preview is that I felt the Giants still had a way to go to bridge the gap with Philly, that they closed the gap with Dallas, and they are more on equal ground with Washington.

Please explain why, if Andrew Thomas wasn’t ready, the Giants didn’t put him on IR. Thank you. –Frank C.

New York Giants offensive tackle Andrew Thomas

New York Giants offensive tackle Andrew Thomas / Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Frank, had the Giants put Andrew Thomas on IR to start the season; he would not have been able to practice in any capacity with the team for at least four weeks, which would have put his progression back to playing shape further in the hole.

The Giants made the right decision with this; the only thing that no one could foresee is how Thomas would feel after pushing his surgically repaired foot a little further.

James, I think that is certainly a possibility. If you go back a couple of years, when there was talk of Seattle maybe trading Wilson to the Giants, I remember saying that I thought he was a system quarterback, and I wondered if creating lanes was a part of that system, as since leaving Seattle, Wilson hasn’t looked quite as good.

Do I think the current Giants offensive line can create throwing lanes? I’d be happy if they showed they could block guys more consistently and maybe open some holes at the point of attack and beyond for the running game. 

I think it’s going to depend on the circumstances, Ed. I know that’s a very generic answer, but you have to look at the whole picture.  

Andrew, I think we need to slow down at this moment. I really do. If this team goes 0-4, maybe even 0-5, we could see a change, but it would be an interim change.

I also suspect that we’d need to see Jaxson Dart before a change is even made at head coach.

And by the way, an experienced GM and coach doesn’t guarantee better results. Dave Gettleman was an experienced GM. Pay Shurmur was an experienced head coach. Need I say more?

I hadn’t heard that. Was that reported somewhere?

Kris, the Giants kept the same starting players from last year, save for the quarterback.

This was the same group, again, save for the quarterback, that ended up ranking near the bottom of the league in every macro offensive stat.

What’s that line? Is insanity doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results?  

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