New York Giants offensive coordinator Matt Nagy has already had a Patrick Mahomes conversation with Jaxson Dart.
Given Nagy’s experience in Kansas City, the Mahomes debate was always going to happen. The new Big Blue OC’s message to his young QB: Be yourself.
“He’s Jaxson Dart. He’s not Patrick Mahomes.” Nagy said earlier this week, when the Giants opened free practice, via the NY Post.
No one is comparing Dart to Mahomes, but considering Nagy’s previous employer, the question was obvious.
Nagy was in Kansas City during Mahomes’ first season in 2017, when the quarterback started just one game as a rookie. Nagy then left to coach the Chicago Bears for four seasons before returning to full-time Mahomes in 2022. Nagy rejoined KC as a senior assistant and QB coach and spent the last three seasons as Andy Reid’s OC.
Knowing how Mahomes coaches and approaches the game is helpful for the Giants and Dart, but it’s not a game plan.
“We can use it for more, like routines and maybe how we did things,” Nagy said. “First of all, I know how much he Jaxson respects Patrick. We’ve talked a little bit about the process and what he’s been through, but we’ve also made it clear that you have to be Jaxson Dart. He’s going to do it.”
Nagy has experience with young QBs who have blossomed into stars, and while in Chicago, those who never beat the traps — Mitchell Trubisky, Justin Fields.
Nagy noted that while the Chiefs weren’t in the market for a QB in 2025, they still did their due diligence on Dart, and he came up with the Ole Miss product’s accuracy and scrambling ability.
“Back then, a year or two ago, I didn’t know how tough he was and how good a runner he was,” Nagy said. “He was a very good, sneaky good runner, tough, physical, played the quarterback position well. You could tell he was a competitor.”
Balancing Dart’s running ability and keeping him healthy should be top of mind for Nagy and the Giants, just as it was to keep Mahomes upright in KC.