New York Giants: Davis Webb will be backup before the end of 2017

While the New York Giants have veterans to back up Eli Manning, rookie Davis Webb will take the job before the end of the 2017 season.

New York Giants fans want a bold prediction during this lull of offseason activities? Well here’s one for you all: Giants third-round pick Davis Webb will find himself as Eli Manning’s backup before the end of the 2017 NFL season.

Davis Webb is a guy who has been underestimated his whole life and has repeatedly proved doubters wrong. As early as middle school, Webb began to compile a list of skeptics to use as motivation. His middle school football coach who placed him on the “C” Team, per the NY Post.

Webb’s high school head coach Kevin Atkinson — who’s known the Giants quarterback since he was a baby — remembers one moment in particular when he called the rookie into his office after their team finished with a less than impressive season in Webb’s sophomore year.

The quarterback voiced his frustrations in not being named the starter over the graduating senior on the squad and defiantly informed Atkinson that he would not continue to play baseball in the offseason either. As Atkinson demanded Webb continue with baseball to become as most well rounded as possible, the head coach recalls the quarterback snapping, per the same NY Post story:

"“I’m not gonna play baseball because I’m gonna be a Division I quarterback, and if I don’t get a scholarship, I’m sure somebody’s going to be happy to have a 6-5 — because I’m gonna be at least 6-5 — quarterback to walk on. And then I’m gonna work my tail off in college and I’m gonna play in college, and if I don’t play in the NFL, then I’m gonna be a Division I offensive coordinator. So you tell me why the hell do I need to play baseball?”"

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Some may see Webb’s response to Atkinson as cocky — I see it as a display of confidence and drive from an athlete who knows exactly what he wants in his career. He was absolutely correct in that assumption as well, compiling 83 touchdowns, 34 interceptions and almost 10,000 passing yards over the span of his four-year college career with Texas Tech and Cal.

Webb’s high school incident above is an interesting tidbit of information and all. But how exactly does it tie into him vying for the Giants backup quarterback role?

It’s simple; multiple media sources and fans everywhere are doubting that Webb will step into that backup role behind Eli at any point in 2017. Even John Mara himself has already expressed doubt in an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show when he said, per NFL.com:

"“I think it’s a little too premature to be anointing this guy as the heir apparent to Eli. [Webb] hasn’t set foot on the field yet.”"

Mara and much of the media will all be added right onto Webb’s list of skeptics — the ones spanning back to his youth that he proved wrong with his successful college career and eventual draft by one of the most storied franchises in all of football: the New York Giants.

This is why I am going out on a limb here and saying loud and clear: Davis Webb will take over the backup role to Eli Manning at some point in 2017.

Webb will have to wait to prove himself behind Johnson and Smith at the remainder of Giants OTAs and then mandatory camp and the preseason. However, Webb uses these obstacles as motivation — he does not simply accept his role and move on with life accordingly. Webb is already asking Eli as many questions as possible and is continuing to further his bond with the team and tight end Evan Engram in particular, creating and reviewing flash cards so they can both better familiarize themselves with the playbook.

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Of course, there is still a lot of work that has to be done to refine Webb’s technique, with offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan wanting to improve his lower body techniques a bit more. So far, though, he is turning heads every time the ball is in his hands.

The guy even looked better than Eli on his first day of Giants mini-camp. Webb is so dedicated to his new role that he even took a trip out to Seattle to learn more about the West Coast offense under Jim Zorn shortly after he was drafted by the Giants.

Either Johnson or Smith will start the year as the Giants backup to Eli Manning. As much as that makes Giants fans cringe, that will not change. Johnson was with the Giants last season and has thrown for only five touchdowns, 10 interceptions and 1,042 passing yards in 29 NFL games over his career.

Smith, on the other hand, started 30 games in his four seasons with the New York Jets and compiled 28 touchdowns, 36 interceptions and almost 6,000 passing yards. However, Smith is coming off of an ACL tear and, perhaps more importantly, has never completed 60 percent of his pass attempts in a season. Smith’s hard work in his short time with Big Blue has not gone without notice, but it is still far too early to even begin to name a backup.

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Again, this is not an ideal backup situation for the Giants and they are fully aware of that, However, every fan should be extremely excited to watch Webb’s hard work and determination on the field over the summer months, as well as his work ethic behind the scenes. And if he persists and stays true to form, the backup role will be his.