Big Blue View
The New York Giants will travel to Northwest Stadium to take on the Washington Commanders in Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season.
That’s right, we have real, live, honest to goodness NFL football this week. So grab your Old Bay and a crab cake, because we’re heading to Maryland.
This is where the rubber meets the road for Brian Daboll, Mike Kafka, and the Giants’ franchise as a whole. The Giants fielded one of the worst offenses in football over the last two years, averaging 15.6 points per game in 2023 and 16.0 points per game in 2024. For some context, the NFL’s 17-game average was 21.7 points scored in 2023 and 23 points in 2024.
The Commanders, meanwhile fielded an average defense — They ranked 18th in points allowed (391, 23 per game), T-14th in yards per play allowed (5.4), and 15th in EPA/play allowed (0.020). They’ve added a few pieces since then, signing veteran edge rusher Von Miller in free agency, drafting Ole Miss cornerback Trey Amos in the second round, and getting veteran CB Marshon Lattimore back healthy after he struggled with a hamstring injury last year.
For their part, the Giants are hoping to take some significant steps forward in their offensive performance, and perhaps play with a more aggressive philosophy than they have in the past.
So what can we expect from the Giants’ offense when they have the ball?
The Giants did make a point of upgrading the depth on their offensive line this past offseason — a definite weakness a year ago — but their only real change to the starting offense was at the quarterback position.
And that’s the Giants’ bet; that moving on from the triumvirate of Daniel Jones, Drew Lock, and Tommy DeVito to Russell Wilson would invigorate the offense.
We won’t know how, or how much, the Giants will change their offense with Wilson at quarterback. It’s probably safe to assume that the bones of the offense will remain in place, with the usual RPO and West Coast quick game concepts to keep the chains moving. The bigger question is whether the passing offense can stretch the defense, and that is where Wilson is expected to shine.
Wilson executed both quick-game passes and vertical passes well in the preseason. He quickly navigated the read progressions while also being decisive and accurate down the field. One of the big highlights of the preseason was Wilson’s 80-yard pass to Beaux Collins, a pass delivered on-time, in-rhythm, and accurately to a spot about 60-yards down the field. But even excepting that play, Wilson led the NFL in passes that traveled more than 10 yards in the air last year.
The Giants largely neglected the intermediate-deep area of the field last year and seem to be betting that a stronger vertical passing will open up the rest of their offense. The hope is that Wilson’s deep passing will play to the strengths of Darius Slayton and Jaylin Hyatt,...
