Giants searching for offensive identity with QB call still pending

John Harbaugh is still working through the New York Giants’ quarterback decision for Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans.

The coach said the staff is evaluating the combination of players and schemes that gives New York the best chance to move the ball, score points, and protect the football at this moment in the season. Both Jameis Winston’s recent body of work and J.J. McCarthy’s still-developing comfort level with the offense are part of that overview.

“We’re working through that now, honing in on a decision,” Harbaugh told reporters on Monday.

Winston has helped the team win games and earned the coach’s respect for doing what was required when he was on the field. McCarthy, who arrived only a couple of weeks ago, is still building a feel for the offense. The upcoming bye week is also part of the broader discussion, and Harbaugh acknowledged that waiting to name a starter is at least a partial competitive consideration against Houston.

“Jameis has done a great job in so many ways, and I just admire him and respect him for it. He’s helped us win games and did what he had to do to win games and that’s something you value very much,” Harbaugh said. “And J.J. just got here a couple weeks ago and where do we stand? We’re trying to put an offense together that he’s got a feel for and those kinds of things.”

The quarterback uncertainty sits inside a larger offensive picture that remains unsettled. The loss of Jaxson Dart altered what the unit could be, and the staff has spent recent weeks searching for the right mix after that change.

“When we lost Jaxson, that made it tough for us to exactly to be what we said we wanted to be. So, that changed everything,” Harbaugh said.

He described the offense as still finding itself and emphasized that the Giants, like most teams, are a work in progress at this point in the season. The responsibility now, he said, is to identify what works and put together a team capable of taking advantage of the opportunity in front of it.

“We are most definitely a work in progress,” Harbaugh said. “It’s our responsibility now to find ourselves and to put together the type of football team that can go get what we want. It’s all right there for us.”

The staff continues to sort through those variables as it prepares for Houston.