When the New York Giants hired Matt Nagy as their offensive coordinator, most of their fanbase released a collective groan. After all, what had he done with the Kansas City Chiefs to show that he was the best option to lead the unit forward? Under Nagy, the Patrick Mahomes-led Chiefs had become stagnant on offense.
Nagy looks like a new man in New York, though, especially since J.J. McCarthy's promotion to the starting quarterback role. He's dialing up more explosive plays than he ever did in Kansas City, and the Giants are benefiting from it.
It's starting to look like John Harbaugh's trust in Nagy was warranted all along.
Giants are seeing a side of Matt Nagy that the Chiefs never got
It hasn't been all sunshine and rainbows for Nagy in New York. Early in the season, he had some questionable play calls that limited his offense. But he seems to have hit his stride in recent weeks, putting together one of the NFL's most effective offenses despite his limited roster.
Per SumerSports, the Giants rank ninth in the league in offensive EPA per play since Week 6. They're pushing the ball downfield on 14.3% of their passes, which ranks fifth league-wide. Only 58.8% of their passes are short attempts, which is the lowest rate in the league.
By comparison, Nagy's 2025 Chiefs threw short passes at a top-ten rate of nearly 70%. In fact, the Chiefs threw short passes at a top-ten rate every year from 2023 to 2025.
Nagy isn't just pushing the ball downfield for the sake of doing so. He's finding creative ways to put his best players in favorable positions and generating explosive plays out of those looks.
Think of the touchdown Malik Nabers caught against the Arizona Cardinals. Nagy lined Cam Skattebo and Isaiah Likely up as receivers outside of Nabers, putting Nabers in the slot. This gave Nabers a one-on-one look with a linebacker, which he easily won.
Then, in the win over the Texans, Nagy consistently lined Likely and Nabers up next to each other. Houston's defense was put in a bind, giving Nabers plenty of open looks. These small adjustments are opening up big plays for the Giants in a way that Nagy rarely managed with the Chiefs.
Giants' Matt Nagy-J.J. McCarthy pairing is working beautifully
Jameis Winston didn't have the arm to access all of the throws that Nagy drew up, but McCarthy does.
Despite it being their first full game together, Nagy and McCarthy seemed to be on the same page throughout the win over Houston. The QB was hitting his receivers in rhythm, finding explosive play after explosive play against one of the most talented defenses in football.
Nagy finally got the running game clicking, too, giving the offense a more balanced approach. Nearly every play seemed well-timed, even if they didn't always work.
With Nagy at the helm, the Giants are the only team in the NFL that has scored 27+ points in more than four games. The offense isn't perfect, but it's getting the job done.
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