Mike Kafka is still relatively new into this coaching business. Still, the 34-year-old former Northwestern quarterback and former Kansas City Chiefs quarterbacks coach is getting his shot to run an NFL offense.

Kafka was hired by Brian Daboll to be the offensive coordinator for the New York Giants. After spending one season in Evanston as a graduate assistant, Kafka has been with the Chiefs for the past five years, working in a variety of roles.

So, the idea that he’s prepared to run an NFL offense — and fix one of the worst in the league — is receiving plenty of raised eyebrows. But Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald believes Daboll’s decision was exactly what the Giants need in order to address some of their concerns.

“I will tell you this, the New York football Giants are gonna get a terrific person who is going to grind and do everything he can to help that organization win and I think just embodies what New York and Chicago are all about,” Fitzgerald told the New York Post.

When Kafka joined the Chiefs in 2017, he started out as an offensive quality control analyst. He made a quick jump to quarterbacks coach in 2018 and added passing game coordinator to his title in 2020. In Kansas City, Kafka was moving up the ladder pretty quickly.

Fitzgerald doesn’t believe it will end there, either.

When asked if he thought Kafka had what it takes to be a head coach someday, Fitzgerald has no doubt in his mind.

“Absolutely, there’s no question in my mind,” Fitzgerald said. “First of all, he’s a Northwestern man, so he’s incredibly bright. He was unbelievably dedicated and just a relentless football player. He played at a high level and knows what it takes to get there so he’s experienced what the players will have experienced … he was willing to grind.”

Kafka had a solid career as a player at Northwestern in the 2000s, throwing for 4,265 yards, rushing for 891 more and accounting for 31 total touchdowns in four seasons. He was then selected in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles.

His playing career may not have went the way he planned, but Kafka appears to have a bright future in the coaching ranks. He’s already got a ton of support from Fitzgerald.