Have you ever pulled down the safety bar on a rollercoaster and said to yourself, "I don't know if this can get me through this ride, but I guess it's what I'm working with."
That's about where the New York Giants are with their quarterback situation at the moment. They announced on Wednesday that J.J. McCarthy will start against the Houston Texans in Week 7, per ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
After McCarthy's late-game heroics against the New Orleans Saints (even if those heroics came mostly against backups), it would have been hard to justify rolling with Jameis Winston for another week.
Still, McCarthy's first start of the season couldn't have come against a more terrifying opponent.
Giants are setting J.J. McCarthy up to fail against Texans, but they had no choice
First, consider the Texans' defensive line. On one side, you have Defensive Player of the Year front-runner Will Anderson Jr., who leads the NFL with 7.5 sacks. Oh, and opposite him, you're dealing with perennial Pro Bowler Danielle Hunter, who has had double-digit sacks in each of the last four seasons.
It's the most dangerous pass-rushing duo in the NFL, and both of the Giants' offensive tackles are recovering from injuries.
Of course, the Texans also have one of the league's best cornerback tandems in Derek Stingley Jr. and Kamari Lassiter. The Texans don't have a clear weakness.
Outside of Brian Flores and the Minnesota Vikings, it's hard to think of a worse defense to make your first start against. It wouldn't be surprising at all to see the McCarthy magic of Week 6 be replaced by an utter disaster in Week 7.
Still, the Giants didn't have much of a choice. The offense was clearly better with McCarthy than it was with Winston, even if his comeback came against the Saints' second string. The former Vikings QB gives the offense more ways to move the ball downfield than the "Jameis Winston Experience" does.
J.J. McCarthy doesn't have to be a hero to help Giants win
New York's best chance to maintain its lead in the NFC East isn't McCarthy's heroics. The G-Men have one of the league's fastest-rising pass-catching duos in Malik Nabers and Isaiah Likely.
Rather than trying to create explosive plays on his own, McCarthy needs to focus on feeding those two targets throughout the game. Get the ball out quickly, especially against elite pass rushes like the Texans', and let your receivers win the game for you. Especially without a stable running game to help him out, that's McCarthy's only path to success.
Against the Saints, he got lucky on a couple of deep shots. Throws like that won't slide against Houston. McCarthy needs to play within his limits if the Giants are going to have a shot at stealing another victory.
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