These days, a lot of NFL teams only carry two quarterbacks on the 53-man roster and one or sometimes two on the practice squad, a designation made easier by the allowance of a certain number of game day elevations from the practice squad as needed.
Davis Webb is all too familiar with that, as he spent last season on Buffalo’s practice squad, while seeing fellow “teammate” Jake Fromm end up as the Giants’ starter late in the season.
It looks like Webb may be headed for a similar fate in New York this fall, but he has two potential things going for him, one of which was unexpected: the injury suffered by Tyrod Taylor in Sunday’s preseason finale (which gave Webb extended playing time).
“(Entering in the second quarter) was the plan; there’s only the second, third, and fourth that I was anticipating but Tyrod gets down sadly and get thrown in there,” Webb said of his extended action Sunday. “I kind of got a sad rep there because of Tyrod obviously, and I hope he’s okay, but that’s the job of the backup, too.”
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The other, more notable check in the pro column is Webb’s familiarity with head coach Brian Daboll, who was the offensive coordinator in Buffalo last season – but he still spent this preseason trying to show he belongs, and advantages aside.
“I think I’ve shown leadership, and ability to move the football and get points,” Webb said. “That's the job of the quarterback, take care of the football. I think we all did a pretty good job in the preseason, all the quarterbacks. There weren't many interceptions. I think there were two in all three games. So, we were smart with the football and that's the job, get points for the offense. I think I did my best and I'll see what happens.”
“I think he was efficient. Made good decisions. Led the team down to score points when he got his opportunities,” Daboll said of Webb’s preseason. “I have a lot of confidence in Davis, and I've seen him grow a lot the last few years that I've been with him: his fundamentals, the way he plays the position, his decision-making process. The last few years he's gotten better and better.”
If anything, perhaps that statement is proof that as a quarterback matures in an offensive system, improvement is imminent, which may bode well for another Giants QB with a cloudy ling-term future.
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“I think Daniel has made a tremendous amount of jumps. If you watched the last couple of weeks of practice, it's gotten better and better every day and I'm excited to watch him play,” Webb said of starter Daniel Jones. “This offense is a lot of fun to play in. It takes a lot of reps, but once you get it and get it rolling, you can have a lot of fun with it. I think he is milliseconds close to that.”
Webb will know his fate by 4 p.m. Tuesday, when the roster cuts have to be in to the NFL, and he’s hopeful his name won’t be among those called.
“I've definitely talked about it with a few guys, especially young, good rookies and some vets. We've all been in this situation, but I think this is my best preseason I've had,” Webb said. “I think that's a credit to the offensive line and the coaches, and (offensive coordinator) Mike Kafka did a great job calling plays. It was a lot of fun this preseason. Hopefully it works out.”
Daboll even admitted, too, that Webb’s play has made his decision tough on that front.
“Yes, certainly. He's been in the offense for a while. I think you can tell out there he feels fairly comfortable in our scheme, and we know what he likes. And he's done a really good job since he's been here,” Daboll said.
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
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