Giants OC Mike Kafka identifies a key trait of Jaxson Dart that reminds him of one of the NFL's superstar QBs

The first career start for New York Giants rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart is generating significant buzz from the fan base. Giants fans are eager to see how the 2025 first-round pick from Ole Miss will perform against the Los Angeles Chargers and beyond.

Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka will be the man pulling the strings for that first start. Kafka has spent his coaching career around many gifted quarterbacks, including serving as the Kansas City Chiefs' quarterback coach from 2017 to 2021, when they drafted Patrick Mahomes. Ahead of Sunday's debut, Kafka was asked if he sees any parallels between Dart and Mahomes.

He stated he sees a similar communication style between the two.

"Yeah, it just all starts with the open lines of communication between, whether it's the play caller, the
head coach, the quarterback coach, and then the players."

Mike Kafka compares Patrick Mahomes and Jaxson Dart

When speaking with the media today, Kafka shared that he notices similarities in how Mahomes and Dart communicate with coaches and teammates.

"So open lines of communication, 'I like this. Hey, add this," Kafka told reporters, "This would really help me with this motion.' Or 'hey, this is our vision for this play and why we have it set up this way.' Anytime you can open up those lines of communication, that's going to make everyone better."

Kafka established that the communication style that Dart has shown in his first week as the starter has been impactful. He elaborated that Dart has been direct about telling him what he feels will set him up best to succeed.

"Absolutely, and every quarterback does. When you have the quarterback room that we have, and they're so dynamic and they're so verbal, it's really great as a coach," Kafka stated, "Jaxson has done a great job, too, in terms of this week."

Many are wondering how Dart's usage in the Giants' offense will look. His skill set differs from Daniel Jones' last year and Russell Wilson's this year. The offense he flourished in at Ole Miss could provide examples for what they'll deploy Dart to do.

"I think there'll be certain elements of just things that Jaxson has done well, whether he was in college or in high school," Kafka told the media, "You want to fit the system to that player, any player, really, to what their strengths are."

The emphasis since the news broke on Tuesday has been that Dart will provide a significant spark for this roster. Hopefully, Kafka can unleash a unique version of this offense that we haven't seen to maximize the tools that Dart brings to the field.