Mike Kafka Set to Make Play-calling Debut for New York Giants

The New York Giants will unveil a new, more modernized offense Thursday night in their preseason opener against the New England Patriots.

And there at the forefront calling the plays will be none other than Mike Kafka, who is beginning his first season as an NFL offensive coordinator after serving four seasons as a quarterbacks coach/passing game coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs under Andy Reid. 

Giants head coach Brian Daboll, in a radio interview with WFAN on Monday, confirmed that Kafka would call the plays Thursday night but stopped short of naming the 35-year-old former NFL quarterback as the team's regular-season play caller.

“I look at it as an opportunity,” said Kafka when asked whether this Thursday night game feels like a tryout for him. “An opportunity not only for myself but for the players. Everyone out there is working hard to make the team and show what they can do, and show that they can build themselves a role. So, I’m looking to go out and do my job to the best of my ability and put the guys in the best position to be successful and show what they can do.”

Kafka has only been on the job for seven months. Despite the short amount of time, Kafka is focused on the improvement that will be needed daily for this offense to hit its stride and is looking forward to the new challenges they will face on the road against the Patriots.

“I think every day you’re going to evaluate,” said Kafka, who, along with Daboll, was instrumental in designing the Giants' current offensive system. 

“I mean, throughout the entire season, today’s no different. When we get to the preseason game, it amps up another level. And you’re playing against not the same guys that you’ve been seeing for the last few months. So, it’s a different level of intensity. We’ve got an away game coming up. So, all those things are going to be new for some of our young guys and some of the guys we’re introducing to the offense. So, I think that’s going to be a good challenge for us.”

This summer, Kafka had the chance to sink his teeth into his new position and work with this offense at length, receiving the opportunity to try new schemes with Daboll in the process.

“It’s been great learning experiences between the situations we call in practice,” said Kafka when asked what he’s learned about play calling. “Dabs does a great job of mixing those types of things in throughout practice, whether it be in the red zone, two-minute, backed up, short yardage. We’ve thrown so many situations at not only just the coaches and play callers but also the players. And I’m proud of how they’ve responded to those things.”

A big part of the growth Kafka has been able to foster with this new offense comes from the guidance Daboll has provided and the communicative relationship they have between each other and amongst their coaching staff.

“We talk all the time about those types of things and how we want to run things,” said Kafka when asked about the freedom and control he has with this offense. “But when you’re in training camp mode, it’s evaluation," he said.  

"You’re evaluating the players; you’re evaluating the scheme. Me and Dabs talk all the time about how we want to attack certain defenses. How we want to attack certain teams. How we want to use our players. So, that’s been an open conversation since I got here.”

Between his own NFL experience--Kafka played with several teams as an NFL quarterback from 2010-2015 after being drafted in the fourth round by the Philadelphia Eagles before moving on to the Patriots, Jaguars, Bucs, Vikings, Titans, and Bengals, and his coaching work with the Chiefs, Kafka brings a great amount of knowledge to his new role. 

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But shaping this offense has been a collaborative effort between Kafka and Daboll, which Kafka has embraced and learned much from.

“It was super exciting,” said Kafka about sharing that experience with Daboll. “I think Dabs has been around for a long time, 20 plus years in the league, so to be able to pull from his experiences. Pull from the experiences where I was from, that’s been awesome. There are multiple ways to run certain schemes. 

"There are multiple ways to teach it. Certain schemes, certain ways. So, we’re mixing; we’re kind of mixing and matching on certain ideas. But that’s been the fun part. We’re trying to solve problems and make sure all our issues are covered. I love all the conversations we’ve had with our staff and with Dabs.”

Though forming this offense has been quite the process, both Kafka and Daboll have put in a lot of work to see to it that this offense is where it needs to be, come the start of the regular season. But even with having to meld two completely different sets of experiences and philosophies, Kafka is confident about the direction of this Giants offense and the growth they’ve been able to muster together in preparation for the regular season.

“I think we’re right on schedule,” said Kafka. “I think we’re right where we want to be. I think we’re continuing to figure out some schemes that we’re better at and things that we want to work on – whether it’s run or pass game. So, I say we’re right on schedule. I like where the guys are at. We got to put together a good day of work today, and then we’ll continue to look forward.”

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