Jaxson Dart, the Giants’ prized first-year quarterback, acquitted himself just fine over the weekend, during a two-day rookie minicamp.
Which means ... not a whole lot in the grand scheme of things, though it’s certainly better than him looking like a complete disaster.
Bottom line: Dart — just drafted 25th overall, with the hope that he can be the Giants’ next Eli Manning — still faces a big learning curve.
And it would be a stunner if he starts in Week 1, though it’s not like Russell Wilson is really any good anymore. Obviously, as we’ve mentioned, Dart could start by, say, midseason, if things are going poorly for Wilson.
In the meantime, don’t be a myopic fool and put a lot of stock into what Dart accomplished (or whatever he didn’t accomplish) during rookie minicamp, while playing with (and against) mostly tryout players.
Remember, the Giants didn’t even do any 11-on-11 team periods work in those two practices. Just 7-on-7 drills.
So what’s the next step for Dart?
Well, that would be working with backups — as part of the Giants’ actual team — when they begin spring practices.
The Giants will have 12 such practices — 10 during voluntary organized team activities and two during mandatory minicamp. They’re all the same sort of no-pads, no-contact workout. It’s just that the OTAs are voluntary and the minicamp is mandatory. Dart surely will attend all of it.
OTAs begin in about two weeks, on May 27. Minicamp ends June 18. And then the Giants will be off until training camp starts in late July. Those 12 spring practices over three weeks (along with the accompanying meeting team) should give Dart a good early foundation.
It also should give him a much better idea about the true nature of his NFL learning curve than rookie minicamp did, as he faces (and plays with) veterans, even if he won’t work with the starters. (And he won’t.)
So yes, Dart had a perfectly fine showing during rookie minicamp. Which beats the alternative. But he still has a long way to go. Remember that.
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Darryl Slater may be reached atdslater@njadvancemedia.com.